Guo Ning has always been pessimistic about the situation. He even has a vague premonition that Zhongdu will inevitably change hands in the next two years. But firstly, he had big plans and had to wait for the right time; secondly, the drought and hot weather this year meant that, according to common sense, the Mongolians would wait for the weather to cool down before taking action.
Therefore, in addition to sending people to inquire frequently, he always remained deferential to Tu Danyi, hoping to maintain this cooperation as long as possible.
After all, Tu Shanyi resisted the threat of Zuo Cheng with one hand, and delivered a large number of weapons and horses to the reckless people with the other hand... He gave too much.
But what Guo Ning didn't expect was that even if his trust in the Dajin court had reached the extreme, it was still too much. Even if his vigilance against the Mongols was extremely high, it was still too little.
Since the collapse of Monan Mountain's rear defense line, Dajin's ruling area has retreated to the south of Yanshan Mountain. To the north of Yanshan, there are only a few isolated strongholds left to probe the enemy's situation.
But once the Mongols really moved, the strongholds themselves would either be besieged or ruthlessly torn out. The Chi and Yi armies, which relied on the Wanggu and Khitan people, had already cooperated with the Mongolian army on a large scale.
As a result, Wanyan Gang, who was in Jinshan Province, could not grasp the Mongols' movements, and Zhongdu, which was in the rear, had no control.
Therefore, no matter how hard Guo Ning worked in Zhongdu, no matter how actively Du Shisheng ran around, and no matter how sensitive the Xiancai Chucai were to the situation in the court, they could not find out the real and reliable military information.
At the same time that Guo Ning led his troops to Hejian Prefecture, there was a stronghold nominally belonging to the imperial court at Yuanyangbo in the north of Xuande County, a place called Anguli Nao'er by the Mongols.
When groups of Mongolian troops suddenly appeared on the grassland, the Wanggu people and Khitan soldiers in the stronghold were only surprised for a moment, then silently moved out of the way and opened the door of the stronghold.
The faces of the Mongolian cavalry were dark due to the sun and dust, and they looked at the soldiers with cold eyes. Their short and violent horses wheezed and panted, charging into the crowd without stopping. A Mongolian officer asked a few questions loudly, but when he received no answer, he waved his whip and whipped the soldiers.
When the soldiers began to flee, the Mongolian cavalry jumped off their horses and broke into every house.
They kicked down the door, took down the fence wood, built a bonfire on the spot, and then began to enjoy the fried rice and meat porridge presented by the residents. The soldiers and residents gathered together, kneeling and shivering.
Since the two invasions and plundering of the Central Plains the year before last and the year before last, the equipment level of the Mongolian army has significantly improved. But almost everyone in the cavalry team in front of them was wearing armor, which proved their extraordinarily noble status.
A soldier knelt on the ground and explained softly to the others: If any one person in such a team made a mistake, the lives of all the people in the entire stronghold combined would not be enough to compensate.
This soldier's knowledge is not bad.
The group of Mongolian cavalry in front of them were the Tuluhua guards in Genghis Khan's Qixue army. Among them, there was a heroic young man who was dressed like the other guards, but with a gold dagger stuck in his waist.
The young man devoured his food and said to everyone: "Gurejian and his people are coming with me. Others have a good rest!"
The Mongolian cavalry continued to eat and drink. The man named Gulejan and his twenty horsemen immediately dropped the food in their hands and followed the young man out.
Young people galloping on the grassland.
The closer we get to Angourinaoer, the more horses we see along the way.
He saw tens of thousands of horses roaming freely on the grassland, seemingly in disarray. But in fact, these horses are carefully divided into many groups according to their teeth and coat color. Under the supervision of the herdsmen, the horses are like five-colored clouds blowing in the wind.
A wrangler with a rat-skin robe wrapped around his waist and his bare upper body riding a fierce old horse, walked among the horses. They kept shouting and waving the ropes to threaten the stallions who wanted to bite each other.
Many people saw the young man from a distance and bent down to salute.
The young man smiled and waved to them, and quickly passed through the horses. After running for a moment or so, he saw huge Guliyans.
Inside each Guliyan, there are hundreds or even thousands of Mongolian warriors resting, competing or competing in archery.
The largest Guriyan is composed of hundreds of tents. The people living in the tent are the Qixue Army of the Mongol Khan, also known as the Suwei Army.
This army is composed of four veteran generals, Mu Huali, Chi Laowen, Borhu and Borshu, serving as commanders of Qixue, with a total of 10,000 people.
Among them were a thousand Huo'erchi, the quiver warriors, and a thousand Kebu Tiegul, the Panzhisu guards. The remaining 8,000 Tulu flowers are scattered classes. These Vulture Flower Knights are all descendants of Mongolian households of ten thousand, one thousand, one hundred, and ten households and their followers, so they are also called the Proton Army.
Surrounded by Qixue's army, there is the Sulu Ding flag standing tall, a symbol of the Mongol Khan's invincibility.
The young man immediately dismounted and walked around the Sulu Ding flag from the side. He bent slightly, crossed the crossed spears of the two quivers, and walked into the huge tent under the banner.
In the center of the huge tent, there is a huge candlestick inlaid with gold.
Yelu Ahai, a Khitan man with broad shoulders and a Chinese character face, was sitting cross-legged on the white felt next to the candlestick, pointing at a large sheepskin picture, and telling everyone about the layout of the Jin army.
Yelu Ahai was well aware of the situation in the Jin Kingdom and was one of the first subordinates to defect to Genghis Khan, earning the respect of everyone. The young man did not dare to disturb, so he tiptoed around to the front of the queue and listened carefully.
Yelu Ahai said: "The Jurchens are pitifully timid. Since last year, they have not dared to herd horses and sheep here. They all huddled in the city, preferring to lower their heads and eat dogtail grass rather than face us." It's a pity that even those few cities were all conquered by us once. Therefore, their main force is not in Xuande City or Dexing Prefecture, but has shrunk to Jinshan Mountain further south."
Hearing his words, the surrounding Mongolian Nayan and warriors burst into laughter.
Yelu Ahai continued: "To the south of Jinshan Mountain is the Juyong Pass. I heard that the Jurchens sealed the gate with molten iron, and filled the narrow valleys with hundreds of miles of iron caltrops, waiting for us to attack!"
The Mongolian generals who were laughing suddenly became quiet again.
These majestic and huge cities, located in dangerous terrain, are the most disgusting things for the Mongolians who are accustomed to fighting in the field. Even if they attack with the courage and strength to kill a thousand people, the city remains unmoved. That feeling of frustration is more torturous than a thousand failures.
When the Mongolian army came here two years ago, the Jurchens, relying on their own huge force of hundreds of thousands of people, gathered their forces for four consecutive confrontations with the Mongolian army at Wushabao, Wuyue Camp, Yehuling, and Huihebao. As a result, they suffered four consecutive disastrous defeats and were ultimately defeated.
Genghis Khan then mobilized his troops and generals to pursue the victory and killed the Jurchens. Their bodies lay hundreds of miles away, and the dead were hidden in the wild Saichuan.
Because they were defeated too quickly and violently, the Jurchens did not even have enough troops to garrison such a powerful pass as Juyong Pass. As a result, the brave general Zhebie rushed through it. This led to the plunder that later spread to Zhongdu and Hebei, and traveled thousands of miles. Looting and massacre.
But if the Jurchens did not fight with their side from the beginning, but were like timid rabbits hiding in their holes, hiding in the city... The Mongolian generals looked at each other, and felt that this move was ridiculous, but apart from ridicule, they seemed to Nothing can be done?
Everyone's eyes were now directed at the throne decorated with gold and precious stones, and at Genghis Khan sitting cross-legged on the throne.
On the grassland as wide as the sea, among the Mongolians as numerous as gravel, Genghis Khan was the most powerful and wisest.
Wherever he goes, no matter how ferocious warriors are, they will bow; wherever his eyes touch, even a wrought-iron city will be destroyed; even if it takes ten nails to climb, no one will hesitate. Half a point.
Genghis Khan was tall and strong. Although he was over fifty years old and had gray hair and beard, his face was ruddy and he was still energetic. His eyes sometimes revealed keenness and intelligence, and sometimes seemed to emit a cruel light that only a wild beast can have.
"The Jurchens are timid and reckless; stupid and greedy. So there is nothing to worry about."
Genghis Khan said: "Since they are hiding in Jinshan, we will send a small team to retake Xuande and Dexing Prefecture, and then rush to Jinshan to provoke them, harass them with arrows and arson, and use cavalry to cut off their connection with Juyongguan." . The Jurchens will soon lose their temper and rush out to fight us. At that time, we will pretend to be defeated, lure them all out, and then kill them all in one fell swoop."
There was no need for discussion or hesitation. Genghis Khan decided on the battle strategy in an instant. And his strategy is always right. It is a special talent granted to the Great Khan by Changshengtian, and everyone is used to it.
At that moment, everyone jumped up and competed to be the vanguard of the army.
Genghis Khan glanced at everyone: "This task does not require a famous warrior. As soon as your flag appears, the Jurchens will not dare to leave the city. Therefore, I want a colt that has just left the nest, a smart little pony." Go ahead and do it. Are there any such people in this tent?"
Before Genghis Khan finished speaking, the young man who had just entered the tent shouted happily: "Yes, yes! It's me!"
The Mongolian generals present heard his cry and laughed with joy: "The fourth prince is back!"
This young man was Genghis Khan's fourth son and his most favored son, Tolei.
In the past few years, Tolei had been following Genghis Khan and participated in the battles to unify Mongolia and conquer Xia and Jin. And this time, it was the first time that he led his troops independently and participated in the war.
Genghis Khan also laughed: "Okay, you go with the Red Horse Prince Consort. As long as you lead out the Jurchens, it will be your great achievement!"
"Wise Father Khan, can you tell me, is there any reward for such great achievements?" Tuo Lei raised his face and asked loudly.
Genghis Khan was amused by the young man and asked, "What reward do you want?"
Tuo Lei replied proudly: "I want to continue to be a pioneer, and I want to capture Juyong Pass for my father!"
Genghis Khan was silent for a long time.
The entire tent immediately fell silent.
Tuo Lei suddenly felt flustered. He didn't know what he said wrongly, which angered his father, so he knelt on the ground and pressed his forehead against the ground.
"This time, we are not going to Juyongguan."
Genghis Khan spoke slowly, his words were rich and full of caution, which was rare for Mongolians: "After the hunting dogs on the grassland charge at the enemy, they will remember to avoid the thick leather robes and use their teeth to bite the enemy's throat. You guys It should be like this. My new subordinates, Shi Moming'an, Guo Baoyu, Liu Bolin and many others told me that in the mountains west of Juyong Pass, there is a pass where a yellow sheep can run for three days and three nights. , called Zijingguan. This time, we will attack Hebei from the Kingdom of Jin from Zijingguan.”
Genghis Khan stood up and stood next to the bonfire, stretched out his palm and spread his fingers: "Attract the Jurchens from Jinshan, annihilate them, and ensure the safety of our rear. It will take two days. Cross the mountains, find the weak pass, and attack It will take three days to get rid of it. If the foal does well in Jinshan..."
He held Tuo Lei's shoulders: "Then at Zijin Pass, every enemy you encounter behind you, I will let you stand at the front of the entire army."
Tuo Lei was overjoyed.
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－
Note 1: Guliejian means Prince Consort. This refers to Chiju (or Chiku), one of the powerful leaders of the Hongji tribe, the Mongolian national honorary relative of Tu Manlun, the third daughter of Shang Temujin and the head of a thousand households. According to Yuan history records, Chi Ju and Tuo Lei jointly conquered Dexing Prefecture in this year.
Note 2: Guliyan refers to a circle-shaped garrison made up of many tents, with the chief’s tent located in the center of the circle.
Note 3: Despair means that those who can understand the history of the Yuan Dynasty are not humans, but gods.
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