Chapter 1 When the Afternoon Sun Was Somewhat Sultry

When the afternoon sun was somewhat sultry, Zhao Guanren, together with Chancellor Lü and President Wang, led the entourage out of the old palace in Luoyang and headed towards the military camp outside Guicheng.

Perhaps because they had just paid respects to the late Wang Boyan, who had accompanied the emperor on horseback and served as chancellor, the atmosphere was slightly somber. The group proceeded slowly along the Jian River, but halfway there, considering Chancellor Lü's age, they stopped directly at a roadside grass shed for a brief rest.

This grass shed had probably been used for selling tea, but it was now empty, though the tables, chairs, and utensils were all still there, indicating that the owner had left in haste. As soon as Zhao Guanren, Chancellor Lü, and Jiedushi Wang entered, the Imperial Guards swiftly wiped down the furniture and arranged it in order, allowing everyone to sit comfortably. They even found the stove behind the shed, gathered firewood, and started heating some water.

Of course, those below the rank of Secretariat Drafter would have to stand, as there were no extra chairs, but they might get a little hot water.

Once seated, the discussion naturally turned to the war situation, especially since Chancellor Lü had just arrived from the south and was not very familiar with the military deployments in the north. These past few days had been spent traveling, and there hadn't been a chance to sit down and properly discuss the current state of affairs.

"According to the military reports, Han Shizhong should have crossed the river by now," Lü頤浩 sighed, stroking his knee. "His Imperial Guard Left Army is composed of elite troops. After joining forces with Li Yanxian, they should have at least sixty to seventy thousand men. I wonder if they can capture Hezhong Prefecture in one battle?"

As soon as Chancellor Lü spoke, at least half of those around him exchanged glances... Although this Chancellor Lü had courage, decisiveness, and was skilled in horsemanship and archery, he was still far from a professional in military matters.

Even Zhao Guanren found his words inappropriate.

"Chancellor Lü is overthinking things," Zhao Jiu said with a smile, seeing that no one dared to respond. "Hezhong Prefecture has a large city like Hedong, and as long as the defenses are tight and everyone is of one mind, even if the number and combat power of the soldiers in the city are inferior to Han and Li, they can hold out for a month or two, until the artillery arrives to batter down the walls."

Lü颐浩 nodded slightly.

At that moment, Wang Yan, President Wang, couldn't help but interject, "Your Majesty, Chancellor, there's quite a bit of discussion in Guanxi about Han, the Prince of Han..."

Zhao Jiu remained silent, while Lü頤浩 instinctively stroked his beard and raised an eyebrow. "What discussion?"

Wang Yan hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and said, "It's not that I'm presuming to criticize a colleague, but there have been constant impeachments from Guanxi, and I heard about them frequently when I was there... It's said that after the Yaoshan battle, Han, the Prince of Han, was granted the title of Prince, and he has gradually become lax. In the Pingxia battle, Your Majesty used Yue Fei, Qu Duan, and Wu Jie, but he didn't achieve much merit. He seems to think that his contributions are too great to be rewarded further, and that Your Majesty is deliberately unwilling to use him again, so he has become even worse. He is complacent, perfunctory in military matters, fearful of the situation, living in leisure, and even indulging in literary pursuits..."

Lü颐浩 didn't like what he was hearing and turned to Zhao Jiu.

"It's all just an act," Zhao Jiu said expressionlessly. "He has sent many secret memorials, expressing his lifelong desire for the Northern Expedition, with sincere words, and even wrote a poem to declare his ambition..."

"Your Majesty," Lü颐浩 said sternly. "There is nothing in the world that cannot be discussed with the chief ministers."

Zhao Jiu chuckled dryly and looked around.

Yang and Liu understood and waved their hands, and all those who were standing immediately retreated, saving trouble.

"Han Shizhong does indeed exhibit such behavior," Zhao Jiu said candidly, seeing that only his confidants remained. "It's a common problem with him, not just after Yaoshan, but he was lax even before Yaoshan when he returned to Guanxi, but it has become more and more obvious after Yaoshan and Pingxia."

"Then why not remove this person?" Lü頤浩 frowned. "And entrust him with military affairs on one side."

"Because it is Han Shizhong who is lax, not the Imperial Guard Left Army," Zhao Jiu said with a forced smile. "This Han Liangchen has a thousand flaws, but he has two redeeming qualities: first, his loyalty and courage are unmatched, and he will not shirk or be perfunctory in military matters, no matter how dangerous they are; second, he is extremely strict in governing his troops, even if he himself is lax and has many flaws, it does not prevent him from being extremely strict with his subordinates. The Imperial Guard Left Army under his command has strict discipline, and all the soldiers are brave and capable of fighting... Therefore, it is enough to urge him to be brave in battle... He and his army are truly worthy of being called my backbone."

Lü颐浩 sighed upon hearing this, seeming to recall something, but he was still somewhat worried: "If the commander is so lax, can he really not affect the combat power of his troops?"

"Since we're on this topic today," Zhao Jiu paused slightly, seeing this, and continued, "I might as well reveal something else to Chancellor Lü... In August, when Chancellor Lü and I left Nanjing for Guijing, we responded to the various commanders along the way, and then praised some and criticized others... Do you remember?"

"I remember, Your Majesty praised Yue, Wang, and Li, and reprimanded Wu and the two Zhangs," Lü颐浩 blurted out, then pondered. "Han and Qu were not mentioned?"

"That's right, do you know why?" Zhao Jiu asked in return.

"Wasn't it just random?" Lü颐浩 suddenly laughed. "There must be those who are neither praised nor criticized, among those who are praised and criticized."

"While that's true, it's also true that I didn't know how to praise or criticize them," Zhao Jiu finally told the truth. "Han Shizhong has a strong army but a mediocre general, while Qu Duan has outstanding figures among all the military officers below him. Qu Duan himself is both civil and military, Liu Qi can be regarded as the only promising Confucian general who has withstood the test of war among the military families, and Li Shifu has both family loyalty and courage. Even the Zhang Zhongfu and Zhang Zhongyan brothers are rare brave generals with strategic talent, and the key is that everyone knows to put their heart into military affairs... But the Imperial Cavalry is indeed the weakest link in our entire army, and this is not something that can be changed by human effort, but we have to pour a lot of effort and countless military resources into it."

Lü颐浩 was stunned for a moment, then realized: "That's right... The Imperial Cavalry was hastily formed, and it relies heavily on foreign cavalry... Even if the generals are excellent, how can they form an army in three years and compare with the Jin cavalry? But since we are going to fight to the death with the Jurchens, we always need to build up a cavalry force that is large enough and well-equipped."

"The same goes for," Zhao Jiu looked up at the grass shed above his head and narrowed his eyes slightly. "In the Imperial Guard Left Army, no matter how lax Han Shizhong himself is, his troops are the old core that survived the bloody battle of Yanling. They have rich combat experience and sufficient military supplies. He himself has been in the army for decades and knows the importance of military affairs, so he dares not mess around in the army. In addition, I can directly bypass him and promote Wang Sheng and Xie Yuan, so that the training, promotion, and transfer of troops will not be chaotic. This is why the Imperial Guard Left Army can still be relied upon by the state... If he really messed around in the army, how could I tolerate him?"

"Even so, it's still better to have a strong army and a wise general," Wang Yan勉强又插了句嘴.

"It's difficult," Zhao Jiu shook his head. "The current system of commanding troops is due to the current situation. It's a rare good thing that these people don't rebel, don't attack each other, and are willing to listen to orders and fight against the Jin. How can we expect too much... Yue Fei and the Imperial Guard Front Army can be regarded as having a strong army and a wise general, so I have entrusted him with the real responsibility of commanding on one side."

The few people around him were thoughtful... Yue Fei has the real responsibility of commanding on one side, which means that Han Shizhong does not. In fact, considering that Zhao Guanren came in person, this trip seems to be the current emperor leading Chancellor Lü and President Wang to personally supervise the army.

This can also be regarded as a combination of soft and hard tactics,敲打了一下 President Wang, don't always hint to Zhao Guanren that he can go out and take charge of the Eight Character Army again if something happens... Why did he leave the army in the first place? Is he really unaware? Is he not satisfied with his current position?

However...

"What about Wu Jinqing and the Imperial Guard Rear Army?" Lü颐浩 suddenly asked again. "If Han Liangchen is a nominal commander, is Wu Jinqing a real commander?"

"Wu Jie is one of the few people who has the same upright talent as Yue Fei, which is even more obvious than Han Shizhong, and the Imperial Guard Rear Army is not bad... But he himself, and the Imperial Guard Rear Army, cannot get rid of the old habits of the Western Army..." Zhao Jiu said frankly. "He can only be regarded as half a real commander, like Han Shizhong, he has to be watched and warned by me, otherwise all kinds of tricks can come out."

"What about Zhang Rong?"

"Zhang Rong and the Imperial Navy are certainly not bad, and Zhang Rong is also one of the few people I trust completely, but the navy is just a specialized force... Controlling the Yellow River may be useful for taking Daming Prefecture... But when it comes to the decisive battle, I'm afraid I won't be able to use him even if I want to."

"Then there's no need to talk about Zhang Jun, Li Yanxian, Ma Kuo, Wang De, and Li Qiong," Chancellor Lü sighed slightly. "Zhang Jun is similar to Han Shizhong, but he and his troops are even more unbearable. Li Yanxian is similar to Qu Duan, but he is slightly better than Qu Duan, and his troops are mostly grassroots, so we can only see the effect in battle. Ma Kuo is also dedicated to Taihang, and Wang De and Li Qiong are directly under the Emperor's command."

Having said this, just as Wang Yan was about to say something, Lü颐浩 pondered for a moment and came to a rather interesting conclusion:

"In this way, this situation of great generals plus the current dynasty's system is somewhat specially suited to the meaning of an emperor on horseback... As the saying goes, 'The general is capable, but the ruler does not interfere, and victory is achieved'... Your Majesty entrusts Yue Fei with the responsibility of commanding on one side and no longer interferes, and then personally supervises these generals with flaws, taking their strengths and making up for their weaknesses, making overall arrangements, and giving appropriate authority at the right time without interfering in specific command, which can maximize the joint efforts of the generals... Is that right?"

Zhao Jiu didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and he couldn't say yes or no.

Fortunately, although there were not many close officials left around, there were also Fan Zongyin and Ren Baozhong, who immediately took over the conversation and flattered him.

Then, because it no longer involved the commander, most people could interject, and for a time, Yang Yizhong, Liu Yan, Yu Yunwen, Mei Li and others also took the opportunity to speak.

The topic also shifted from the gains and losses of Hezhong Prefecture to the reinforcements for Taiyuan and Longde prefectures, and the Jin army's response.

Moreover, as more people gathered around after the lifting of the order to keep away, it further extended to whether the East Mongols would participate in the war, which would inevitably have a truly decisive impact on the war situation, and whether Goryeo would participate, and which side the two would stand on if they did participate?

And how long it would take to capture Yangqu City, the capital of Taiyuan Prefecture, and Yuancheng, the capital of Daming Prefecture, and so on.

These were all very serious but also very interesting topics.

For example, although the Northern Expedition has officially begun, there is actually not even a formal declaration of war... Prime Minister Zhang is said to have written one, but after that incident, he didn't dare to issue it... So the Song army is more like a surprise attack.

In particular, the Song army has set up dense supply stations along the Yellow River after the Battle of Yaoshan to ensure that information transmission is as smooth as possible in this era, and to ensure the mobility of troop deployments as much as possible, which will obviously give the Song army a further advantage.

In fact, many of the accompanying close officials and Imperial Guard officers believe that the main force of the Jurchens in Hedong may not have realized that the Song army has launched a full-scale Northern Expedition.

The reason is simple: the Third Prince died in Qinghe, north of Daming Prefecture, and there are three possible routes for transmitting the information from Daming Prefecture to Hezhong Prefecture:

The first route is to go nine hundred *li* to Yanjing first, and then Yanjing sends the information to Zhengding Prefecture, five hundred *li* away. Zhengding Prefecture sends documents to Longde Prefecture and Taiyuan Prefecture at the same time. When it reaches Taiyuan Prefecture or Longde Prefecture, the information will be transmitted to Hezhong Prefecture through the Zhiguan Pass or the Fen River channel.

The distance between the latter two routes is similar. Going through Taiyuan is first three hundred and fifty *li* of mountain passages, then seven hundred *li* of open passages. Going through Longde Prefecture is six hundred *li* of main roads, then three hundred *li* of Taihang passages.

The entire journey is two thousand three to four hundred *li*, and half of it must be done in the mountainous and dense Hedong.

The second possible route is that Daming Prefecture sends the news of the Third Prince's death directly to Taiyuan through Zhengding Prefecture or Longde Prefecture at the same time as it reports to Yanjing, and then Taiyuan issues it to Hezhong Prefecture.

Doing so can directly save about a thousand *li* of distance, saving more than one-third of the time.

If this is the case, Taiyuan or Longde Prefecture should already know the news at this time, but Hezhong Prefecture may not.

There is also a third transmission route, which is the most direct and simple. While Gao Jingshan reports to Yanjing, he directly transmits the news to Longde Prefecture, and Longde Prefecture transmits the news to Taiyuan on the one hand and to Hezhong Prefecture on the other.

All three possibilities exist, but many people believe it is the first, because Gao Jingshan belongs to the East Route Army, and Wanyan Boliye Su of Taiyuan is the West Route Army. There is no reason for him to privately transmit the news of the sudden death of the Third Prince, who oversees the front line, to Boliye Su, who belongs to a different system, but should quickly report it to Yanjing only.

Regarding this, although Zhao Jiu was very eager in his heart and roughly believed it was the first one, he still did not express his opinion like Chancellor Lü and President Wang. It was not that the front line would give feedback in a few days, but that he, as the Emperor, had to maintain this calm and composed posture, as if he could foresee everything.

For the same reason, Zhao Jiu also had speculations about the East Mongols and Goryeo, but he also did not interject.

Regarding the East Mongols, perhaps because of the vigilance towards the Borjigin surname, even if the brothers and sons of Heble were patting their chests and expressing their loyalty here, it did not prevent Zhao Jiu from already imagining a final big boss, the image of the ultimate beneficiary of this battle.

This Emperor inexplicably believed that Heble might make a self-interested choice based on the development of the war. He would be like the Eastern Wu in the Battle of Red Cliffs, uniting with the weaker side to participate in the final battle.

As for Goryeo, Zhao Jiu felt that those people would never act until the Great Song had conquered the area outside the customs, but they would never turn against the Great Song either, and would only continue to perfunctorily appease them carefully.

The reason is simple... The North-South conflict of the Goryeo people, that is, the opposition between the Pyongyang Yangban and the Kaesong Yangban, is essentially a kind of uneven distribution of spoils.

The collapse of the powerful minister meant that the Kaesong Yangban, led by Kim Bu-sik, gained the greatest political benefits.

The rapid rise of the Jurchens has greatly reduced the scope of activities of the Goryeo people in the north, and the direct economic interests of the northern Pyongyang Yangban have been damaged.

Therefore, the Pyongyang Yangban, who have been divided into two factions in politics and economy, frequently cause trouble and shout for an expedition against the Jin.

But now, with the unexpected development of transit trade, neither side, including Zhao Guanren, the instigator, underestimated the scale and potential of this trade. As a result, the Pyongyang Yangban, as the northern counterpart, greatly benefited from the trade, which made them lose the basic desire to find trouble with the Kaesong Yangban.

It is not to say that there is no more factional struggle, but that both the north and south of Goryeo are unwilling to disrupt the status quo of eating the dividends of transit trade.

In fact, even the rapid rise of the East Mongols in recent years has been stimulated by this Song-Jin transit trade... Even Zhao Guanren himself is reluctant to stop this trade until now.

Because the benefits are too great.

In a sense, this is the trade between the two largest and richest countries in the world today... Enough to prosper a country or weaken a country... Otherwise, how could Zhao Guanren have gathered the previously unattainable financial gap for the Northern Expedition.

Fighting is fighting, business is business.

In this way, everyone talked a lot, and it was rare to speak freely, which also allowed Chancellor Lü颐浩 to have a better understanding of the situation and geography of the north, which can be regarded as achieving the intended purpose.

After speaking for a full half an hour, when everyone was still in high spirits, suddenly, the sound of horses' hooves and the distant sound of bells came. Liu Yan nudged his mouth to signal, and several Mongolian princes in the Red Heart Team who had already stood unsteadily quickly poured out. After a while, they brought a messenger, and then Liu Yan carefully handed over an urgent military document to Zhao Guanren.

Opening it and taking a glance, Zhao Jiu handed the document to Lü颐浩 beside him, then said in a deep voice without changing his expression:

"Li Yanxian has replied, he is not going to Hezhong Prefecture."

Lü颐浩 was still reading the document and did not say much. Wang Yan, the Imperial Guard Commander, immediately expressed his dissatisfaction: "The court has been planning for many years, and these strategies have also been approved by these commanders themselves. How can they each go their own way as soon as the war starts?"

"It is said that the military situation has changed," Zhao Jiu glanced around at everyone and responded casually, seeming not to care about this matter. "He said that he originally intended to close the door and beat the dogs, first sweeping through Jie Prefecture and entering Jiang Prefecture. At that time, with the Iron Ridge Pass in hand, he could block the Zhiguan Pass on the one hand, block the reinforcements from Longde Prefecture in the southeast, and organize a defense line on the spot to resist the reinforcements from Taiyuan in the north, and then he could slowly deal with Hezhong Prefecture. However, after the imperial decree arrived, as soon as he sent troops, he received a request for help and a warning from Ma Kuo, saying that the main force of the Jin army in Taiyuan had been mobilized, and at least three *wanhu* around Taiyuan had suddenly attacked, but he did not know if there would be any follow-up... So he simply took the entire army to Jie Prefecture, hoping to quickly open up Jie Prefecture, join forces with Ma Kuo, and block the Jin army in Taiyuan."

Hearing Zhao Guanren's words, not only Wang Yan, but also the other accompanying close officials changed their faces several times... Saying that the military situation had changed and that he intended to close the door and beat the dogs, they eased up a little, but when they heard that the main force of the Jin army in Taiyuan had come so quickly, they were all alarmed again.

"Why are you making such a fuss? Isn't this the original intention of the Emperor to supervise in the center, but for the commanders to make decisions according to the situation?" Lü颐浩 finished reading the document, and did not mean to show it to Wang Yan and others. Instead, he put it away and handed it over to Liu Yan, who was in charge of military affairs, and said plausibly: "From the outside of the river to the East China Sea, the battle line between the two countries stretches for three thousand *li*, but where is this three thousand *li* just a line? Each has its own depth in front and behind, with cities and markets, passes and dangerous places, rivers and mountains, all different. Moreover, in the middle, such as the hundreds of *li* of the Lüliang Mountains, it is impossible to support the logistics of a large army, and the Taihang and Wangwu Mountains separate the Jin army's east and west routes, and now they will inevitably separate us... The general is capable, but the ruler does not interfere, and victory is achieved... Across a big river, in such urgent military situations as this, it should be up to the commanders on the front line to make decisions according to the situation, and it must not be easily investigated."

"Chancellor Lü is right," Zhao Jiu said expressionlessly, nodding directly before Wang Yan could speak.

"Conversely, it is also right for Li Yanxian to seize the Iron Ridge Pass... You should know that the Jin army stationed a large army in Longde Prefecture for this reason, isn't it because they saw that this place is the most convenient to support the east and west routes," Lü颐浩 continued to sigh. "There is the Zhiguan Pass to Hezhong Prefecture, and the Huguan Pass in Longde Prefecture directly to Daming Prefecture, and then a flat plain. Even if there is something wrong on the front line, they can retreat from the northwest to Taiyuan, and from the northeast to Zhengding... The timing, the terrain, and the people, in a national war, the decision of victory or defeat, everything must be considered."

"Things are still a little wrong," Wang Yan, who knew the geography of that place better than Lü颐浩, frowned even more when he heard this. "It is not impossible to imagine Taiyuan sending a large number of reinforcements to Hezhong, but it is nothing more than what was just said. Taiyuan directly knew the news of the Third Prince's death and guessed that we might launch a full-scale Northern Expedition, and Hezhong Prefecture was the first to bear the brunt, so Boliye Su ignored everything and quickly sent reinforcements south... But since Taiyuan Prefecture knew the news of the Third Prince's death, there is no reason for Longde Prefecture not to know, right? If Taiyuan Prefecture sent reinforcements, there is no reason for Longde Prefecture not to send them, right?"

As soon as Wang Yan said this, everyone around him was thoughtful, but soon, everyone around the Emperor was divided into two groups, half of them almost quickly thought of something, and the other half were as puzzled as Wang Yan.

Probably because he felt that the atmosphere was better today, and Wang Yan maintained respect and restraint, or because it was a little embarrassing to talk about this topic in front of the Emperor, Lü颐浩 wanted to say something but stopped, and finally did not say anything.

Zhao Jiu did not explain directly, but glanced at Ren Baozhong.

The latter, upon receiving the signal, quickly smiled and said:

"Jiedushi Wang, in my humble opinion, just as Taiyuan Prefecture was probably aware of the Third Prince's death and rushed to send a large army south at all costs, Longde Prefecture was probably afraid to send troops precisely because it knew of the Third Prince's death."

Wang Yan was stunned for a moment.

Ren Baozhong glanced at the Emperor who was looking at the roof of the shed again, and then continued to smile:

"Jiedushi Wang, think about it. Routes are routes, and news is news. Although Taiyuan and Longde both have the main force of the Jin army and know about the death of the Third Prince of the Jin State, are they fundamentally the same thing? Wanyan Boliye Su, the commander of the Taiyuan Garrison and Military Affairs, is a veteran of the Jin army, plus Yin Shuke's younger brother, and the actual commander of the West Route Army. Even when the Jurchens were widely conferring titles of kings, they did not dare to give him one, just for fear that he would become a king in name and in fact. Such a person, upon hearing the news of the Third Prince's death, would of course have the decisiveness and dare to quickly send troops south."

Wang Yan finally realized something.

Ren Baozhong knew that the other party already understood, but since he had received the Emperor's order, he had to explain it clearly: "But what about Longde Prefecture? Let's not talk about the four *wanhu* in Longde Prefecture originally belonging to the East Route Army. However, the current commander of military affairs in Longde Prefecture, Wanyan Bendu, is only thirty-five or six years old this year, and the north has always been compared to Jiedushi Yue's... But in fact, this person's rise to power is largely because he is a close member of the imperial family and was raised in the tent of Aguda, the founder of the Jin Dynasty, since he was a child. He is known as the Golden Medal Lord, and was a confidant recognized by the three ruling kings of the Jin Dynasty in the past. Similar to this are Wanyan Eluguan, the commander of the Jin Dynasty's Western Capital in Datong... Such people, upon hearing of the Third Prince's death, without the order of Yanjing and without an imperial edict from a king, how would they dare to make a decision on their own and send a large army to Hezhong Prefecture? Even if he later heard the news that our Great Song had sent its entire army on the Northern Expedition and was preparing to rescue, he would probably give priority to Daming Prefecture first, which had the greatest momentum in the war, had internal roots connected, and belonged to the same East Route Army."

Wang Yan nodded repeatedly.

In fact, it was not that he did not understand, but that he had not turned his thinking around. He had already realized it as soon as Ren Baozhong had started... This was precisely the strategic opportunity brought by the Third Prince alone.

If Elido was only a mere person, and not a famous general, and someone from Yanjing could come out to replace him at any time from the rear, why would the death of one person force the Song army to advance its hasty Northern Expedition by almost half a year?

The current situation can already explain the problem.

Gao Jingshan in Hebei did not dare to gather troops and launch a decisive battle without authorization, so he could only watch Yue Fei and the generals of the Yellow River East Road swallow De Prefecture and Bo Prefecture in an orderly manner from the two forks of the road, and push the battle line to Daming Prefecture. In Hedong, there was poor coordination between the east and west routes... Otherwise, if Boliye Su had such a keen battlefield sense and smooth command, he would probably have sent a total of eight or nine *wanhu* from Longde Prefecture and Taiyuan to rush south to seize Jie Prefecture. At that time, the Song army might have had to retreat and seek protection directly, just like the previous several rounds of battles.

The death of this Third Prince was worth a lot, in the literal sense of the word.

"Boliye Su and Gao Jingshan are not collaborators,"

Zhao Jiu's expression remained unchanged, but he continued to speak slightly. "I had a fluke before, thinking that Gao Jingshan might not dare to send the news of Elido's death to Taiyuan quickly, but only to Yanjing... But now it seems that Gao Jingshan is still doing his duty. And Boliye Su is even more calm in the face of battle and dares to make decisions."

"But it is still one step too late for Your Majesty," Ren Baozhong quickly flattered. "After all, Jiedushi Li was able to block it."

"It may not be too late, and it may not be able to block it," Zhao Jiu replied expressionlessly. "The Taiyuan Military Affairs Department under Boliye Su is almost the strongest of the four military affairs departments of the Jin army. He can mobilize far more than just three *wanhu*. Three *wanhu* are just the first batch of combat forces that were hastily gathered around Taiyuan. Although Li Yanxian is outstanding, the troops under his command are of mixed quality. At such a narrow pass, he may not be able to withstand the Jin army's repeated attacks... Moreover, Han Shizhong has not crossed the river, so he dare not send all the troops from Pinglu there."

"Not only that," Wang Yan also immediately got up to remind. "Your Majesty, Han Shizhong is usually arrogant, and Li Yanxian is also usually proud. These two are afraid that they will fight for credit and delay matters, and will not remind each other..."

"Not only that," Lü颐浩 also spoke immediately. "The Jin army's reaction is so quick, it is really beyond expectations, Your Majesty, I think we must prepare for the worst from now on. If we prepare for the worst, calculating the time, Elido has been dead for a full eighteen days. Assuming that Yanjing can also make a decisive decision, hold a meeting immediately after receiving the news to decide on a candidate, and then immediately rush south to Zhengding Prefecture, and then send a golden medal messenger south to Longde, the people in Longde Prefecture may be about to move as well."

Zhao Jiu's heart was continuously shaken, but he had been tempered after all, and he still maintained a calm face.

At the same time, under the leadership of Lü颐浩 and Wang Yan, the many close officials around him had already changed their expressions together, stood up solemnly, and were preparing to bow their heads and listen to orders in the grass shed.

"In that case, don't wait for the result of Hezhong Prefecture... And don't care what Taiyuan and Longde Prefectures are planning. Anyway, at this time, the brave win when we meet on a narrow road, and we must not show weakness... Let the Eight Character Army cross the river first to support the Iron Ridge Pass area!" Zhao Jiu pinched his riding whip and sat on the long bench in the grass shed, issuing orders hesitantly, with many pauses, but there was no intention of retracting his words. "And quickly tell Han Shizhong about the situation here and let him make his own decisions... Also, notify all the troops that after crossing the river, they will be commanded in order according to the sequence of Han Shizhong, Li Yanxian, Ma Kuo, and Li Qiong... The military situation has changed. We don't have to care about an isolated city in Hezhong Prefecture. Let's fight for Linfen first."

Wang Yan immediately responded... The Eight Character Army was his old department after all, and he felt close to them again now that he had left.

Lü颐浩 originally wanted to suggest that Zhao Guanren should quickly send the cavalry first, but when he thought of the matter of the Imperial Guard Cavalry that he had mentioned earlier, he did not say anything after all.

With the imperial decree issued, naturally the accompanying scholars and drafters and other close officials hurriedly wrote the imperial decree and handed it over to the Red Heart Team in the Imperial Guard, who also did not stop for a moment. A few people in a team, each holding a waist card, flew away on horseback.

After all the messengers had left, everyone's thoughts were heavy, and there was no interest in talking. Chancellor Lü stepped forward and asked Zhao Guanren not to delay on the road any longer and to return to the Beimang Mountain camp as soon as possible.

Zhao Jiu naturally followed his good advice, but when he finally got up, he paused again, then pointed to the upper part of the grass shed with his hand and signaled the accompanying guards:

"Take it down for me, be careful not to break anything."

The people around him listened to the order in confusion, and finally 탈里, the 왕자 of the Western Mongols, was thin and tall. With the help of several guards, he was lifted up to touch the wooden beam on the top of the grass shed pointed out by Zhao Guanren. He found something, which turned out to be a small cloth bag.

Opening it, there were actually a few scattered silver coins, plus seventy or eighty copper coins.

Zhao Jiu spread out the bag and turned to Yang Yizhong like a debt collector. The latter understood and immediately took out a few copper coins from his waist and put them in. Lü颐浩 wanted to persuade the emperor to do such meaningless small things and spend more thoughts on big things.

But thinking of what he had just said, 'The general is capable, but the ruler does not interfere, and victory is achieved', and Zhao Guanren's actions may be deliberately calming down because he saw that the atmosphere was tense, he could not say this, so he simply took a copper coin from a guard and put it in the bag.

The people around him followed suit and hurriedly put money in it.

In a short while, Zhao Guanren had probably collected dozens of coins for the shed owner, who was probably taken away to perform corvée labor, and then asked 탈里 to go back up and hide the bag again before leading the crowd out of the shed and setting off for Guimang Mountain.

However, what this Emperor did not know was that while he was hypocritically putting on a show and pretending to be calm, Han Shizhong, who was criticized by him as 'complacent, perfunctory in military affairs, fearful of the situation, living in leisure, seeking to retreat, and indulging in literary pursuits', and who could not function properly without him Zhao Guanren watching over him, had already ended the battle.

The battle process was unremarkable.

On the few *li* wide plain from Hedong's bridgehead and Hezhong Prefecture's capital Hedong City to Pujin, Hu Yantong put on a cautious look on the beach, and only advanced after forming a formation.

About just leaving the beach, four *meng'an* hidden behind the city could not hold back and immediately lined up in the typical formation of the Jin army, with infantry in the middle to meet them, and cavalry on the left and right to flank them in turn.

At first, they did not notice anything unusual, they just felt that the formation of this Song army that was the first to land was dense, and it would probably take some time and effort to swallow it.

So, they specifically sent troops to the beach to block the Song army that was coming later.

But they never expected that the famous Cuipian Army would actually land immediately, and dense crossbow arrows shot from the boats, not giving the Jin army a chance to get close at all, so that this second army could easily form a formation in front of the beach.

At this time, the Jin army was already a little nervous, and two of the four *meng'an* who were in charge began to try to discuss, but the result of the discussion was some hesitation... Because Wundun Sizhong was a bastard, and they would probably be punished if they went back like this, so they might as well muddle along for a while, and leave when the time came, regardless of whether there was anything to be done or not.

With this hesitation, Cheng Min, who had served three terms, led the Beiwei Army cavalry to land calmly under the cover of the Cuipian Army and the shielding of Hu Yantong's troops, and then directly intertwined and bit the Jin army cavalry on the beach, making it difficult for the Jin army to leave.

Frankly speaking, the Jin army had four *meng'an* and twenty-five *mouke*, which was 2,500 cavalry plus 1,500 infantry. This configuration was already very strong, and the Song army cavalry came in a hurry, so at first, the four *meng'an* were a little puzzled and even secretly happy.

They always felt that compared to those long spears and large crossbows, this cavalry