To the south of the Qinling Mountains, thousands of rays of light illuminate the vast Hanzhong Plain.
The continuous sound of artillery disappeared, the sound of galloping iron hooves disappeared, the thunderous explosion disappeared, the thundering sound of fighting disappeared, the pungent smell of gunpowder smoke and blood disappeared, and the sky recovered. Quiet, calm and gentle, as if nothing had happened.
To the west of the Yangzhou Defense Line, to the south of the Han River, and to the northern foot of the Qinling Mountains, for dozens of miles around, the corpses of tens of thousands of men and horses were piled on top of each other, scattered across the wilderness, silently.
Broken cars and broken flags, iron balls and pills, feathers, arrows, swords and guns, and even scattered gold, silver, copper coins, silk and cloth were just scattered around, mixed with the blood on the ground, making it a mess.
After five or six days of cleaning up the battlefield, people from around Yangzhou Chenggu came to help. Even so, there were still so many bodies that were not buried, which shows the cruelty of the war and the heavy casualties.
As for the corpses on the mountain path on the plank road, because the mountain road is steep and rugged, too far away, and the mountain is too cold, we can only give up first, and may have become rations for the beasts in the mountain.
The fire was blazing in the wilderness, and the corpses of fallen soldiers were placed in the middle of the huge fires. In the field, all the soldiers of the Song Dynasty saluted together, and everyone was in awe. Even the people who were carrying the corpses stopped what they were doing, stood upright, and paid tribute.
Zhao Hong looked solemn, stood up straight, faced the blazing fire, gently raised his hands, and saluted a military salute.
A national war, and 30,000 young lives were lost like this. These fearless warriors are the deciders of victory in this national war.
They will go to the Martyrs' Shrine to offer sacrifices, hoping that people, and those who come after them, will remember them.
After returning to the Chinese army's tent, Zhao Hong still frowned and could not see any joy.
After a hearty victory, all the monarchs and ministers of the Song Dynasty in the big tent looked solemn.
"Your Majesty, our soldiers went deep into the plank road to pursue the remaining Tatar soldiers, and killed about a thousand people. However, the terrain of the plank road is complicated, and our army also suffered hundreds of casualties!"
Xu Sheng came in to report, and Zhao Hong frowned slightly.
"Don't chase the poor bandits, let the soldiers come back!"
There are five to six hundred miles of mountain roads with thousands of twists and turns, and I'm afraid I won't be able to get out within a month or two. In the ice and snow, wild animals are infested, and there are no supplies. After leaving the Qinling Mountains, who knows how many people will be left.
There is no need to risk the lives of the soldiers for the sake of these remaining soldiers.
"Your Majesty, in the Battle of Hanzhong, our army suffered a total of more than 26,000 casualties, more than 7,000 serious injuries, and countless minor injuries. In particular, the Yangzhou defense line suffered huge losses, with more than 25,000 casualties."
Xuan Zhen, the Minister of the Ministry of War, presented the memorial, but it was hard to see happy faces.
Since the new dynasty used troops, this was the first large-scale tragic victory. The number of casualties was huge and it was unbearable for everyone.
"Your Majesty, one general can accomplish a great feat, not to mention that this is a national war."
Cui Yu, the Sichuan envoy who had just arrived, also softly comforted the king.
Annihilate the 70,000 Mongolian army! He was very sorry to miss such a tragic battle, but he was also secretly grateful.
If he had been there, would he be able to withstand the horror of this war?
Zhao Hong nodded slightly, feeling anxious in his heart.
Kill a thousand enemies and injure yourself eight hundred. The Battle of Wuxiuguan, the defense of Xingyuan Mansion, two Mongolian cavalry attacks, plus the tragic battle in Yangzhou. The Song army prepared for rainy days, waiting for work with ease, and also had firearms. There were actually more than 30,000 casualties in the army, which shows the cruelty of the war.
"On the Yangzhou Defense Line, our army has 40,000 troops. Except for the 5,000 soldiers and horses of the South Camp south of the Han River, which did not participate, the Beida Camp has 35,000 troops. The casualties reached 25,000, and the casualties exceeded 70%. Our army A soldier who is brave and unafraid of death, who regards death as his own home, can become a strong army in the world!"
Cui Yu stroked his white beard and sighed.
A strong army in the world!
Zhao Hong nodded slightly.
Just like the Korean War in later generations, after this battle, the Song Army became a truly powerful army, and there was no longer any "fear of Mongolia" or "fear of war".
Perhaps, this is the greatest gain of the Song Dynasty's frontier army.
Everything must be looked forward to, Zhao Hong immediately changed the topic.
"What were the casualties of the Tatar army? What were the captures?"
The Mongolian army retreated from Hanzhong to Guanzhong on the plank road and mountain road, and the Song army chased and killed countless people. He was looking forward to the outcome of this battle.
"Your Majesty, just from the Yangzhou line and the Tangluo Plank Road, more than 27,000 corpses of the Tatar army have been collected, and more than 8,000 people have been captured; more than 20,000 war horses have been captured, and countless arrows and weapons have been captured. .Coupled with the previous casualties of the Tatar army outside Xingyuanfu City and the defense line from Xingyuanfu City to Yangzhou, the Tatar army's casualties and prisoners were at least 60,000. The statistics of each army have not yet been completed. It can be said that Torre's 70,000 The army on the west route has been largely wiped out."
Seeing Xuan Zhen's excitement in his eyes, Zhao Hong was also excited.
The entire Western Route Army of the Torre Division was wiped out. It would not be easy for the Mongolian cavalry to go south again, and the offensive and defensive dynamics between the Song Dynasty and Mongolia would unknowingly change.
"If I had known earlier, I would have set up ambushes on the plank roads and mountain roads so that not a single Tatar soldier could escape!"
Lizhou West Road comfort envoy Guo Zhengsun said something bitterly.
It seemed that he was very upset about the heavy casualties suffered by the Song army.
Zhao Hong shook his head gently.
He could not have expected that the northwest frontier army would be able to gather and annihilate Torre's 70,000 Mongolian army. He was impressed by the perseverance and endurance of the Song Army soldiers, as well as their field combat capabilities.
In other words, he overestimated the impact of the Mongolian army and underestimated the Song army's field combat capabilities.
"Your Majesty, I'm afraid there's no hope for next year's winter wheat harvest. If we can't defend our country from the enemy, we'll have to endure the trauma of war."
Chen Longzhi, the pacifier of Lizhou East Road, interjected without a wink.
"Your Majesty, you have nothing to worry about. The grain reserves in Hanzhong can still last until next summer. If it doesn't work, we can transfer grain and grass from Sichuan to Hanzhong."
Several ministers commented one after another. Zhao Hong nodded and said seriously:
"After the fallen soldiers are cremated, they are arranged to enter the Martyrs' Shrine. The injured soldiers are arranged to recuperate, the slightly injured are returned to the army as soon as possible, and the seriously injured are properly placed. Have the pensions and rewards for the soldiers been planned?"
He was really unhappy that he had suffered casualties of more than 30,000 elite soldiers.
"The armies have been counted. Your Majesty, please take a look."
Xuan Zhen waved his hand, and the Forbidden Army brought up the rosters of each army.
Zhao Hong picked up a roster. It turned out to be the Yangzhou Defense Line Cavalry Battalion. Many soldiers were marked with red crosses behind them. Needless to say, these soldiers were killed.
Zhao Hong carefully looked at the reward list of the generals. After a while, Zhao Hong closed the list.
"For all soldiers who died in battle, the pension for each person was doubled, from 100 guan to 200 guan meters and 20 shi; for the seriously injured and disabled, the pension was increased to 100 guan meters and 10 shi; for all other soldiers who participated in the war, the defense line of Yangzhou and the defenders of Xingyuan Fucheng , the reward money is 50 guan meters and 5 shi, and the remaining army's money is 30 guan meters and 3 shi. There are three days left until New Year's Day, and the reward money must be distributed to every soldier or his home before New Year's Eve."
"200 strings! Your Majesty, is it too much?"
Cui Yu was startled and said something spontaneously.
Twenty-five thousand soldiers were killed in the battle, and the pension alone was 5 million yuan. Including serious injuries of 700,000 dollars, this is 5.7 million dollars.
In addition, the army rewarded more than 2 million guans, for a total of 9 million guans.
This is not counting the reward of rice grains.
"Not much! This is a national war, enough to change the national destiny of the Song Dynasty. This is called breaking the momentum, breaking the offensive and defensive momentum between the Song Dynasty and Mongolia."
Zhao Hong insisted, and Cui Yu smiled bitterly while stroking his beard.
Fortunately, the Sichuan Production and Construction Department was well prepared. Otherwise, the reward money alone will empty out the Sichuan treasury.
However, the emperor's generous gift and winning the hearts of the soldiers were of great benefit to the Song Dynasty court.
"Your Majesty, what should we do with the eight thousand Tatar prisoners? There seem to be quite a few Tatar tribe nobles among them."
Xuan Zhen, the minister of the Ministry of War, immediately followed up.
"What a noble, just slave owners! As before, identify and identify the culprits, and send the rest overseas to various places to undergo labor reform."
He has no taste for killing prisoners. Overseas colonial lands require a lot of labor, and these eight thousand captives are just a drop in the bucket.
"Those captured war horses will be incorporated into the Song Dynasty's border army. As for the others, let the Ministry of War handle them."
Except for the war horses, it seemed that not many of the other seizures could be used by the Song Dynasty border troops who used a large number of firearms and had no shortage of armor.
As for the more than 20,000 dead horses, they could only be eaten as horse meat.
"Cao Youwen, is there any military intelligence report?"
When Cao You heard that the troops were entering Shaanxi, Zhao Hong was very much looking forward to it.
Cao Youwen and Yu Jie divided their forces in Qinzhou. Cao Youwen led an army of 20,000 people, and together with Wang Shixian's 10,000 men, marched eastward to Shaanxi Province to attack Fengxiang Mansion. Calculating the time, there should be results.
"Back to Your Majesty, Cao Youwen has just reported military information from Shaanxi. Our army has occupied Fengxiang Mansion, and Wang Shixian's five thousand troops are stationed there. Cao Youwen has already gone east, hoping to capture Jingzhao Mansion before the Lantern Festival. The military newspaper said that Shaanxi is in ruins , is uninhabited for hundreds of miles. If you want to hold on, you need to transport food and grass. Your Majesty, the Tatar army has been defeated miserably in Hanzhong, and Wo Kuotai may reinforce Jingzhao Mansion at any time. Your Majesty should quickly send an army into Shaanxi to transport food and grass, in the hope that Cao You will hear about the help. "
Xuan Zhen said it all in one breath.
Seize the Jingzhao Mansion?
Zhao Hong couldn't help being stunned and laughed.
You heard from Cao that Cao was bold, indeed full of courage, and lived up to his reputation.
Isn't he afraid that Hanzhong will be defeated and the Song army will be surrounded by the Mongolian army in Shaanxi?
"Your Majesty, the Tatar West Route Army has been defeated. The Central Route Army and the East Route Army are fighting fiercely with the Jin soldiers and have no time to separate. There are no troops stationed in Guanzhong, so we can take advantage of the opportunity. However, Guanzhong is dilapidated and supplies are inconvenient. We can send another 30,000 troops. Entering Shaanxi, we first captured Jingzhao Mansion, with an army of 50,000, which was enough to resist Wo Kuotai's troops from Shaanxi."
Chen Longzhi followed the memorial.
He, the emperor's appointed ambassador to Shaanxi Province, is about to take office soon. He didn't want to be frightened and take office with a big baggage on his back.
"Don't you think it's sad? When did the common people become a burden to the imperial court?"
Zhao Hong shook his head helplessly.
"First, transfer 10,000 troops and horses from Lizhou West Road and enter Fengxiang Mansion as soon as possible. Send an order to Fan Zhong, the pacifier of Hexi Road, and ask him to transfer 300,000 shi of grain and grass from Hexi Road to Shaanxi as soon as possible."
The population lost in the war, plus the Jin Kingdom's migration of Guanzhong people to Henan, how many people are there in Shaanxi, 100,000 or 200,000, is embarrassing.
During the Han and Tang Dynasties, the population of Shaanxi was more than 3 million. Even during the Northern Song Dynasty, the population of Shaanxi was still around 3 million. What is the current population? It is extremely scary to think about the destructive power of the Mongolian army.
"Your Majesty, is this too hasty? If Cao Youwen fails to capture Chang'an City, wouldn't his joy be in vain?"
Cui Yu quickly dissuaded him.
"Torrei's 70,000-strong army marched south. How many people can be left in Chang'an City, 10,000 or 5,000? I'm afraid they are all a mob. Cao You heard that there are 20,000 troops with complete firearms and thousands of cavalry. If they can't even attack the city of Chang'an, Then he’s too good!”
Zhao Hong seems to have full confidence in Cao Youwen.
The Mongol army was in dilapidated condition and never defended the city. Even if there were defenders in Chang'an City, they would probably be old, weak, sick and disabled, and not very powerful.
"As for the use of troops in Shaanxi... let the generals come in first."
After a hearty national war, it is natural to reward the six armies and cannot be delayed.
