The stars are dotted on the grassland at night, and the north wind has stopped making noise.
If it weren't for the dense queue of corpses in the wilderness, the smell of blood that hit the nostrils from time to time, and the mediation of some eagles and crows, it would be difficult to imagine that just the day before yesterday, in this vast wilderness, a decision-making process had occurred A century-old battle over the fate of the two great powers.
"Your Highness!"
Guo Ziyi, the Secretary of the Ministry of War, walked into the camp, bowed and saluted: "Your Highness, General Xin is pursuing the traitors and is about to reach Harlem."
"The battle report has just been sent back. When General Xin was pursuing Harlem, he met General Yue and General Di."
"Under the three-way siege, all Meng Yuan's defeated troops who were seen were killed."
Xiao Yi nodded and said, "I understand."
This could have been guessed a long time ago.
With the speed of news transmission at this time, after he decided on the specific strategy of besieging Harlem, he immediately notified Yue Hongling, Han Shizhong, An Zijun, and Di Qing.
According to the time, they had already set off when Kublai Khan took the initiative. When they were fighting with Kublai Khan, Yue Hongling and others should have arrived in Harlem. The next step was to cut off Kublai Khan's retreat. .
Therefore, being able to intercept Meng Yuan's defeated troops was part of the plan.
Talk about it.
This battle.
Meng Yuan is almost equivalent to destroying the country.
There may still be many Mongolian and Yuan cavalry retreating to Ulan Batu.
But once they quit Harlem, they were giving up their backbone.
No backbone.
When to conquer Ulan Batu is also a matter of time.
However, this time issue is also a relatively big issue.
First, the people and horses here in Daqian are really exhausted now, and they are almost a thousand miles deep in the grassland without stopping for a moment.
Two battles of the Anxi Protectorate.
A battle in Shuozhou City.
Then step into the grassland, fight Zuoyu and Qingshuihe, intercept and kill Muhuali, and occupy Ordo.
Finally, to the siege of Harlem.
From November of the twenty-fifth year of Zhenyuan to early February of the twenty-sixth year of Zhenyuan.
Four months full of plans.
Four months.
Spent the New Year in Northland.
Four months.
Almost 700,000 troops participated in this life-and-death battle between Daqian and Mongolia, two giant countries thousands of miles away.
As of now, it is estimated that there are only about 400,000 people.
The battle damage was not small.
This was also the second battle in the first year of Zhenyuan that suffered very heavy losses.
first.
It was Xiao Di who led Yue Shan to fight for the national destiny of the Four Kingdoms.
That battle.
The four kingdoms of the North once again surrendered and tolerated this for more than twenty years.
This battle.
There are no more four countries in the Great Qianbei.
Secondly, on the grassland, it is almost a vast expanse. The Meng Yuan people have their own way of controlling the direction.
The Imperial Guards could easily get lost on this grassland.
So it was always one big army, one big army attacking, never divided into small groups or small groups.
The scouts also have their own way of identifying directions.
However, the grassland is very big.
Message delivery is still too slow.
Now continue to go north and besiege Ulan Batu, and you will definitely encounter resistance from the Mongolian people.
This is their last homeland.
A skinny camel is bigger than a horse.
Da Gan wants to invade their last homeland.
The Meng Yuan people are definitely unwilling and will definitely fight to the death.
The power of Daqian's artillery can indeed easily frighten the Meng Yuan Iron Knights and reduce their morale a lot, but when they encounter the shepherds who are stubbornly defending them.
Unless there are dozens of large cannons lined up, and then plowing the court from south to north to sweep the holes.
However, this requires that the generals and soldiers still have the energy and morale to fight.
Third, the baggage is really not enough.
The opposition from Daqian is also becoming more and more obvious.
Even with his reputation as a prisoner of the crown prince and his determination, Xiao Yi could not ignore the public sentiment in the government and the public.
February is almost over.
The spring breeze blows.
More than 400,000 soldiers are to be disarmed and return to the fields and need to participate in spring plowing.
Seven hundred thousand troops.
More than 300,000 people have been lost in the battle, which is more than 300,000 laborers!
This year's spring plowing will definitely be an arduous task.
Therefore, Xiao Yi planned to station in Harlem.
Only Ulaanbaatu.
It may have to wait until the end of the year.
Xiao Yi didn't know what was going on with Xiao Zheng.
I thought that with generals like Bai Qi, Wang Jian, and Meng Tian, they would not lose against an Eight Banners.
This night, naturally, I stayed awake all night.
Until the morning of the next day.
I saw two large armies, Yue Hongling and Di Qing coming.
"Yue Hongling and Di Qing, pay homage to His Highness!"
The two of them strode into the camp. When they saw Xiao Yi sitting in the first place, they immediately clasped their fists and saluted.
Xiao Yi raised his hand and said, "No courtesy."
He extended his hand to signal and said, "Sit down."
After Yue Hongling and Di Qing sat down, they asked: "How was the situation when you surrounded and defeated Meng Yuan's troops?"
Yue Hongling cupped her hands and said: "General Xin has occupied Harlem, and there are only more than two thousand Mongolian herdsmen guarding Harlem."
"We went all the way south from Harlem, stretched the front line, and encountered many defeated Mongolian and Yuan troops."
"We killed more than 20,000 people along the way."
"Among them, there are also many nobles and princes from the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty."
Xiao Yi praised: "Well done."
Yue Hongling and Di Qing both clasped their fists and saluted, and said, "The victory in this battle was only possible because of His Highness's skillful command and strategic planning."
Xiao Yi waved his hand and said with a smile: "Okay, there's no need to say these beautiful words."
He pointed to the map next to him and said: "Harlem has been defeated, but there is still Ulan Batu."
“I still don’t know what the situation is like over there.”
"But, Temujin is already old and probably doesn't have a few more years to live. Kublai Khan is dead, and several princes also died in this decisive battle."
"There will definitely be civil strife in Ulan Batu, and it is unlikely that troops will be sent south to recapture Harlem in the short term."
"Harlem is still a little far away from the Central Plains."
"We won Harlem in one battle, so we can't just ignore it."
"Just like the Anxi Protectorate, let's establish the Anbei Protectorate here."
"Recruit some Meng Yuan people who are willing to surrender and let them help manage the land of Harlem."
“Also, cash-for-work programs can also be implemented here.”
"Let Daqian's currency play the greatest role here, and the merchants can also be released."
"With such a big grassland and such a big pasture, Harlem also has a lot of supplies."
"The Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue will sort things out."
"These supplies were captured by the soldiers and sold to merchants for military pay."
Guo Ziyi cupped her hands and said, "Here."
Xiao Yi then said to Yue Hongling: "After this battle with Meng Yuan, his vitality must have been severely damaged. Ulan Batu is no longer a good place, so there is no need to worry about it."
“But if you cut the weeds without removing the roots, they will grow again when the spring breeze blows.”
"Dagan is only undergoing temporary repairs now. Ulan Batu will eventually plant the banner of Dagan."
"So, your task now is to take the troops and horses, transport the wounded soldiers to Shuozhou and Jinyang, and comfort them."
Yue Hongling cupped her fists and said, "Here."
Xiao Yi continued: "Han Shizhong and An Zijun will stop the Mongolian and Yuan cavalry coming from Ulan Batu. If not, they will guard it for a while."
"Daqian wants to complete control of Harlem before the spring plowing."
"After the beginning of spring, all the Forbidden Forces will allocate manpower and let them gradually disarm and return to the fields to participate in spring plowing."
"Wait until spring plowing, then return to the military camp and guard the border."
"Han Shizhong guards the Anxi Protectorate, Xin Qiji guards Harlem, and Di Qing guards the Anbei Protectorate."
"Su Lie, Wang Zhen, Zhang Shijie and others must also guard important passes."
"In the future, we need to build official roads for the Anxi Protectorate, Harlem, and Anbei Protectorate to connect them with each other."
The accompanying ministers such as the Minister of Household Affairs and the Minister of Works bowed and saluted and replied: "Here."
Wait until everything is almost arranged.
The meeting just ended.
Yue Hongling led the Yulin Army to escort the wounded soldiers back and went to Shuozhou and Jinyang for treatment.
Because there are more doctors in these places, and secondly, the supply of medicinal materials will be much more convenient.
Many of them are seriously injured and it may be very difficult to even move. They can only retreat to places like Zuoyu and Qingshuihe. Those with a concentration of Mongolian tribes can be placed here.
After all, daily food is also a problem.
Yue Hongling was in charge of the wounded soldiers.
Di Qing is responsible for clearing the field.
In other words, a comprehensive cleanup of the area south of Harlem will be completed.
Not killing people.
Just mark the place, and at the same time, kill some Mongolian people who still want to resist.
This is to prevent them from posing a threat to Daqian merchants in the future.
Xin Qiji guarded Harlem.
Two days later.
Xiao Yi also arrived in Harlem.
This is an imperial capital established by the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty in the north.
It seems.
In fact, that's it.
It occupies a small area.
Earthen walls were piled up.
There are many yurts inside.
This is Harlem, the imperial city of the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty.
it's here.
Xiao Yi also met Han Shizhong, An Zijun, and the King of Liao in Daqian.
It was also the first time for Xiao Yi to see a real person.
The King of Liao was thirty-two years old, fairly elegant in appearance, and had the steady temperament of a middle-aged man.
After this battle against Meng Yuan.
Xiao Yi can already trust this border guard prince.
Compared with princes such as King Jin and King Kang, the King of Liao can definitely be said to be loyal to Daqian.
Xiao Yi was naturally very polite.
The two also chatted happily.
Xiao Yi directly told his big blueprint.
to be honest.
He is drawing a cake.
I drew a very big cake.
The king of Liao listened.
That's really worship.
This kind of great power definitely surpasses any dynasty in history.
Emperor Qin and Emperor Wu of Han were nothing more than this.
What Xiao Yi didn't expect was that after hearing this, King Liao became very interested in sailing.
Even if sailing is very dangerous, encountering storms, typhoons, tsunamis, etc., and directly drowning in the sea, he still wants to take a look.
This prince has a heart that seeks excitement, or in other words, dares to challenge.
It's no wonder that he was able to lead the border troops to guard Datong Pass without letting the gold thieves into the pass.
But he is also an interesting person.
The prairie south of Harlem is huge.
If you want to directly control such a large grassland, you need to build one pass after another and capital city.
And on the fifth day after Xiao Yi arrived in Harlem.
Han Shizhong and An Zijun also returned.
They successfully intercepted the Mongolian and Yuan cavalry who came from Ulan Batu to support them.
More than three thousand were captured.
"Han Shizhong and An Zijun, pay your respects to His Highness." The two walked into the Mongolian Khan's tent, bowed and saluted Xiao Yi, who was sitting there with fists in his hands.
