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Text Chapter 45 Deadlock

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    An error occurred while processing private documents. At the beginning of the Northern Expedition, it was progressing smoothly.  Hu Lie's army was unstoppable, and the Jin army suffered successive defeats. However, Hu Lie's command showed no joy. On the contrary, Li Hu, Yue Fei and Ying Qin were all anxious about the future war.  Obviously, the attack intention of the Tiger Army has been seen through by the Jurchens. Zongfu's military talent is no worse than that of his brother Zong Wang. When the Tiger Army crossed the river, he ordered the Hebei Jin Army to voluntarily abandon the Yellow River defense line and assemble the main force at  The front lines of Handan and Anyang firmly control the initiative on the battlefield.  The Tiger Army was passive.  After the army crossed the river, the morale of the soldiers was high, but the Jin army held the city with heavy troops. The Tiger Army was bound to attack fiercely given its superior strength.  As far as siege warfare is concerned, under normal circumstances, if the attacker does not have a strength advantage of more than five times, it will be difficult to capture tall and strong Hebei towns such as Anyang and Handan in a short period of time.  Once the war drags on and the main force of the Tiger Army is blocked, it will be unable to contain the battlefield for a long time.  Such advantages were completely lost, and eventually the troops had to withdraw due to problems such as money and food.  Zongfu¡¯s move was indeed brilliant. He used his own strengths to attack the enemy¡¯s weaknesses, effectively making up for the military disadvantage of the Hebei Jin Army.  Late at night, in the tent of Commander Hu Lie, Li Hu, Yue Fei and others discussed countermeasures.  "In the Hebei Jin army, the Hebei Han army accounts for at least more than half of the people." Ying Qin looked at Handan City on the map, frowning deeply, "When Wanyan Talan led the Shandong Jin army to attack Kaifeng, the composition of his army  The same is true. As a result, we surrounded him with three times the force and wiped him out in the shortest time. The reason why we achieved such a result was that the Shandong Han army was not very effective in combat, and the Jurchens and Han soldiers were unable to fight.  There was a lack of trust between the troops, and the second reason was that Liu Yu and Liu Lin's father and son defected before the battle. "This lesson is very profound. Wanyan Talan's total army collapse must have given Zong Fu a great impact, so in this battle, he  Decisive battles in the wild must be avoided to prevent the same mistakes from happening again. "Zongfu changed his past combat style and defended the city with heavy troops, which could maximize the combat effectiveness of the Han army in Hebei and at the same time minimize the chance of the Han army defecting before the battle.  Ying Qin said this and shook his head, "The Jin army placed 200,000 troops on the front lines of Anyang, Handan and Zhending, and defended the city. This battle will be difficult to fight." Li Hu leaned over and looked at the map.  Not a word was spoken.  Before leaving Chang'an.  Luo Sinan had repeatedly warned him that the Northern Expedition should not last too long. In addition to the issue of money and food, there was also the domestic tension. Although the imperial court had issued an edict to the world to implement the privatization system of official land immediately, the privatization of official land was a complicated process.  There are too many things involved and it cannot be solved overnight. It needs to be carried out in several steps and requires the cooperation of other policies such as streamlining institutions and officials. Therefore, this storm that affects the entire Central Plains may not be as Li Hu expected.  Gradually subsided this summer.  If the Northern Expedition is delayed indefinitely or returns without success, and the prestige of Li Hu and the Tiger Army is hit, this storm will definitely be exploited by the opponent, with disastrous consequences. For this reason, the Northern Expedition must not only end this summer, but also achieve victory.  There is no room for discussion on the results of the battle.  Now that the initiative in the war in Hebei is controlled by the Jin Army, if the Tiger Army wants to win the Northern Expedition.  To regain Hebei, we must first capture Handan, but the siege was so brutal that no one could predict the outcome.  I remember that Empress Dowager Xiao of the Liao Kingdom sent her troops southward, but was defeated in the siege and suffered heavy losses. In the end, she had to sign the Chanyuan Alliance with the Song Dynasty. From then on, the Khitans never went south again.  If the Tiger Army fails in this battle and suffers heavy losses, then it will have to negotiate peace with the Jin Kingdom as a last resort. The Northern Expedition will be delayed indefinitely. What is more serious is that it will seriously hinder Li Hu from ascending the throne and proclaiming himself emperor and revitalizing the country.  The grand goal of Middle-earth.  Yue Fei saw Li Hu's stern expression and knew that he was helpless, so he offered his advice: "As far as the current war situation is concerned, we have another option, which is to transfer the armies of Gao Baolong and Zhang Gaoer to Zhending, and use the main force from Hedong to attack northern Hebei.  "If the Handan Jin Army remains unmoved, what about the Youyan Jin Army going south to support him?" Ying Qin immediately asked, "What if the Handan Jin Army goes south to support them?"  The war situation in Hebei is even more unfavorable. Although the Daibei Tiger Army can strengthen its offensive from the direction of Juyongguan, Tie Shuai only has so many troops, and his main task is to guard Daibei to prevent Wanyan Zonghan from launching a sudden attack, so we  It's not a good idea to attack Zhending." "We can't afford the siege," Li Hu said with a bitter smile, "We can't afford the money and food, and we can't afford the time." There was silence in the tent.  Liu Jingyuan, Wang An and other assistants also looked at each other, unable to think of a better way for a while.  "We must draw the Jin army out to fight." Li Hu said to himself while pacing back and forth in the tent with his hands behind his back.    "If you want to draw out the Jin army, you must hit their vital points." Yue Fei said, "The key to the battlefield in Hebei is Zhending. Zhending is connected to Youyan to the north and Handan to the south. If Zhending is lost, Youding will  The connection between Yan and Handan was cut off. "But Handan was not surrounded by this." Ying Qin continued what Yue Fei said, "The Handan Jin army can go through Jizhou, go north through the Hulu River, and then enter Hejian Prefecture.  Jianfu returned to the Zhongshan, Gaoyang and Xiongzhou lines and continued to control northern Hebei. "But in this way, the initiative on the battlefield will be controlled by us," Yue Fei continued, "Handan fell into siege, and the Jin army's strategy of defending Hebei failed.  Zongfu had no choice but to abandon Handan and cross the Hulu River and Hutuo River north to ensure the safety of Zhongshan and Hejian towns." Yue Fei raised his head and looked at Li Hu.  "Commander, as long as we force the Handan Jin Army to withdraw north, we can stop them at the line of Hulu River and Hutuo River and fight them to the death." When Yue Fei said "fight to the death", his eyes widened and he gritted his teeth, obviously thinking of that year  How could we not avenge the disastrous defeats of the Song army in the battles of Hutuo River and Hulu River?  Li Hu walked to the edge of the map, looked at Zhending Mansion on the map, and pondered.  "If the truth is lost, Zhongshan and Hejian will be in emergency. Youyan feels deeply threatened and will go south to support. As a result, the number of Hebei Jin Army will greatly increase, and there will be no advantage for us in the decisive battle." Ying Qin reminded in a low voice.  "When two armies are fighting, superiority does not mean victory." Yue Fei retorted, "The Tiger Army has gone through hundreds of battles from the beginning of the Mountain Alliance to the present. How many battles does it have an advantage? The army is at a disadvantage, but it can stimulate the pursuit of the soldiers.  The desire to win, and confidence and morale often determine the outcome of the battle. "Ying Qin also wanted to refute, but Li Hu reached out to stop him, "Follow Peng Ju's plan, assemble heavy troops and attack Zhending." = "Li Hu made the assembly.  The decision was made to attack Zhen Ding with the main force, but there was a problem with the deployment of troops.  At present, there are about 140,000 troops in Hedong. Among them, Li Jin leads Hu Lie's 43rd Army, 44th Army and 45th Army to attack Zhending, while Gao Baolong and Zhang Gaoer lead the main force in Longde Mansion and wait until the Central Plains  When the Shandong Tiger Army reached Handan, they crossed the Taihang Mountains and entered Cizhou to launch a pincer attack from the north and the south.  Now that the attack strategy has changed, and the main target of the first phase of the Northern Expedition has been changed to Zhending, then Gao Baolong and Zhang Gaoer's troops must be transferred to the Zhending battlefield, which will delay at least half a month.  "Commander, I will take the main force of 50,000 people to go north along the Zhanghe River, pass through Mingzhou and Xingzhou and enter Zhaozhou. From Zhaozhou, cross the Hulu River, enter Zhending Mansion, join Li Shuai first, and attack Zhending City." Yue Fei was decisive.  Said, "We must clearly convey this attack intention to the Jin Army in Handan and Anyang, forcing them to change their strategies and withdraw to Jizhou and Hejian Prefecture as soon as possible, thus giving us a chance to win the decisive battle." Li Hu frowned slightly,  "How to solve the problem of food and grass?" From Liyang to Xiangzhou Anyang, to Cizhou Handan, then to Xingzhou, Zhaozhou, and then to Zhending, this is a road running along the eastern foot of Taihang Mountain.  If the army wants to attack northward, it must advance along this route, otherwise it will be more difficult to transport food, grass and baggage.  There are many rivers in the Hebei plain. If you take the route of Damingfu, Jizhou and Hejianfu, the fastest way to transport grain and grass is to take the canal waterway of Yongji Canal.  The grain, grass and baggage of the Northern Expedition were basically stored in Kaifeng and transported northward from Kaifeng.  After the main army from Hedong entered the battlefield in Hebei, the supply problem of its grain, grass and baggage was solved.  Now the strategy has changed. Hedong's 140,000 troops and Yue Fei's 50,000 troops were all concentrated on the Zhending battlefield in half a month. The supply of food, grass and baggage immediately became the biggest problem.  If the Jin army defends Handan and refuses to withdraw, then the 200,000 fierce tiger troops on the battlefield will soon run out of food.  There are many solutions, such as transporting part of the grain and grass to Taiyuan first, and then transporting it from Taiyuan to the Zhending battlefield.  The shortest way from the Central Plains to Taiyuan is over the Taihang Mountains. The mountains are high and the roads are dangerous. Not only will a large number of civilians be required, but the consumption during transportation will also be staggering. This will seriously affect the military supplies of the Northern Expedition and is not advisable at all.  "After we captured Zhending, we marched eastward along the Hutuo River and Hulu River. Taking advantage of the fact that the main force of the Jin army had not retreated north, we quickly captured the Shenzhou, Hejian, and Cangzhou areas. On the one hand, we plundered grain and grass to replenish military supplies; on the other hand, we plundered grain and grass to replenish military supplies.  Cut off the Jin army's northward retreat and surround General Hebei in Jizhou." Yue Fei said, punching the map, "An eye for an eye, blood for blood, blood revenge in the past, blood debt must be paid with blood." Li Hu, Ying.  Qin and others looked at the murderous Yue Fei, his roar echoed in their ears, their hearts were racing and they could not control themselves.  "How many Jin troops are there in Zhending? How confident are you that you can capture Zhending City within three to five days?" Li Hu asked again.  "According to reliable information, there are 30,000 troops from Wanyan Wuta and Han Qinghe on the front lines of Zhending and Anxi. Among them, Wanyan Wuta led the main force to suppress Zhending, and their number should not exceed 20,000." Yue Fei sneered.  ,"Zongfu concentrated the main forces on the front line of Handan and Anyang, which is convenient for us to attack Zhending City.  " "Reliable news?  Li Hu was worried and asked, "Is it really reliable?"  " "The people in Hebei who surrendered to the gold thieves were not all Chinese dogs who regarded the thieves as their fathers. Some of them contacted us through various channels and provided us with news about Hebei, hoping that we would make an early expedition to the north.  "Yue Fei said, "This news is absolutely reliable, Commander, please rest assured.  " Li Hu thought for a long time and nodded, "Urgently inform Gao Baolong and Zhang Gao'er to rush to the Zhending battlefield as quickly as possible.  " "Go and find out for yourself.  Li Hu pointed at Yue Fei and said, "You and Luo Lan go together. Wang Dazhong's Dianqian Army, Zhang Xian's Tenth Army, Niu Gao's Eleventh Army, Fu Xiuguo's Twelfth Army, and Zhao Renyan's Thirteenth Army will be handed over to you."  Command, bring ten days of dry food and set off immediately.  "Yue Fei was very excited and bowed down to accept the order. "Is the messenger from the Kingdom of Jin still there?  "Li Hu turned around and asked Zhu Xia. "The commander-in-chief still wants to meet Wanyan Gao now?  "Zhu Xia asked in surprise. "Of course, it's not a bad idea to meet and talk.  "Li Hu said with a smile. = The attack speed of the Tiger Army was not slowed down because the Jin Army held on to the city. On the 26th, the Tiger Army attacked Tangyin, and the Jin Army retreated. On the 27th, the Tiger Army attacked  Anyang. On the 28th, the Jin army divided its forces and surrounded Anyang City. On the 29th, the Hulie army reached the gate of Handan City.  The main force of the army stood firm in the two cities of Anyang and Handan, but the Hu Lie army lost the strength to continue going north because they failed to capture both cities. On the 30th, Wanyan Gao of Daming Prefecture finally breathed a sigh of relief.  The development of the battle was as Zongfu expected. The fierce Tiger Army was dragged along the front line of Anyang and Handan. Because there was no absolute advantage in strength, the Tiger Army did not launch a siege for the time being. At the same time, the Hedong Tiger Army attacked Zhen.  Like the Handan and Anyang battlefields, the Hu Lie Army also had no strength advantage and could only confront the defending Jin Army. This time the Hu Lie Army attacked Juyong Nanguan with a fierce attack.  Yan Xiyin was confident and heavily guarded. The two sides fought fiercely, but both sides knew that this was just a diversionary attack, so the thunder was loud and the rain was small, and there was no result. However, Zongfu was worried about one thing. So far, Hedong.  The main force of the Tiger Army has not yet appeared. At first, he had speculated that the Tiger Army would attack Handan from the north and the south. However, the Tiger Army from Hedong has not yet entered the Hebei battlefield. From this, he thought of a possibility, that is, whether the Tiger Army was going to "attack in the east and attack in the west".  "While attacking the Handan and Anyang lines with great fanfare, he suddenly attacked Zhending with the main force from Hedong, and then went south to surround the Jin army in Hebei. For this reason, he implored Wanyan Gao to immediately move troops south from Youyan to support the Zhongshan and Zhending lines, so  As a result, even if his prediction became reality and the main force of the Hedong Tiger Army rushed towards Zhending City, the Jin Army would still have the strength to hold them back and bring the entire Hebei war situation to a complete stalemate. At this time, Li Hu came to write a letter.  , willing to negotiate peace with Wanyan Gao. Wanyan Gao immediately noticed that Li Hu had ulterior motives. In the eyes of the Jurchens, Li Hu had no faith at all, and he chose to negotiate at this moment.  The negotiation was obviously meant to delay the war. Why did Li Hu want to keep the war in a stalemate? Wanyan Gao thought of Zongfu's worries and immediately wrote to Yanjing to ask for help.  Wanyan Yanmu led his army south to support Zhongshan and establish the front line. If the Jin army was very determined to bring this battle to a stalemate, Li Hu would have no choice but to negotiate in the end.
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