On March 20, the second year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty, Zhou Linzhi, the Song State's emergency consultation envoy and the third leader of the Privy Council, arrived in Haizhou and met with the Ming army general Zhou Zhi.
At the meeting, Zhou Linzhi begged the Ming army not to start a war, and expressed his willingness to negotiate with the Ming Dynasty on the issue of Sui coins. The previously unfinished negotiations can now be continued. As long as war can be avoided, everything else is easy to negotiate.
Zhou Zhi laughed, and then made an offer of 300,000 taels of silver and 300,000 pieces of silk cloth - they could be discounted with other materials.
However, the total price cannot be changed.
This request was so frightening that Zhou Linzhi almost fell to the ground.
"Why is there another fifty thousand? Wasn't it originally two hundred and fifty thousand?"
"It was different before. If you agreed to negotiate before, two hundred thousand silver and silk cloth would be fine. This was the bottom line of Ming Dynasty. But you refused. Since you refused, Ming Dynasty can only speak with swords and guns. Now, the army is on the string, you But he wants us to call a truce, and if we don’t give him any more, I’m afraid the Ming army won’t agree!”
Zhou Zhi's voice was fierce, as if the strong bullied the weak.
"Having said that, it is true that this was Song's fault, but 300,000 is too much. Can it be reduced slightly? Even if it is to maintain the status quo?"
Zhou Linzhi begged for help.
Zhou Zhi remained unmoved.
"We want to maintain the status quo now? What have you been doing so long ago? Moreover, the Ming Dynasty's army mobilization has been completed. Now the entire army is gathered in Haizhou. How much materials and food will it cost to gather the army? Who will pay for it?"
Zhou Linzhi continued to plead with Zhou Zhi not to start a war, but was unable to provide any tangible benefits. Zhou Zhi lost patience and finally kicked Zhou Linzhi out of the military camp and officially issued a declaration of war to the Southern Song Dynasty on behalf of the Ming Dynasty.
Zhou Linzhi was so frightened that he peed his pants and quickly led his team to run south.
On the third day after Zhou Linzhi left, on March 23rd of the second year of Hongwu, Zhou Zhi officially ordered the entire Ming army to attack. The army and navy attacked together, executing different military plans, cooperating with each other, and sharing their strengths.
The first Ming and Song wars began.
In accordance with the strategic plan previously agreed upon by the Ming army, the Haizhou army began full-scale operations. The Ming army, which had prepared a large number of ferries and pontoon construction materials in advance, began a large-scale operation to cross the Huaihe River that day.
They used the navy as cover in the south of Lianshui County, built ten pontoon bridges, and used hundreds of ferries as tools to cross the river. The entire army crossed the river at extremely high speed.
More than a dozen Song army ships, which had been on guard against the Ming army on the south bank of the Huaihe River, were actively attacked by the Ming army navy commanded by Zhou Mancheng before the army could cross the river.
They ate the Ming army's big rocket before they could react, and were blown to pieces. Then they were surrounded by the Ming army's superior navy.
Zhou Mancheng commanded more than 30 combat ships to bully the smaller ones. He killed the Song Army's patrolling navy in the Huaihe River, sank five Song Army warships, and captured 11 more. It was a good start.
Afterwards, the Ming army began to cross the river on a large scale. The elite infantry and cavalry who crossed the river in advance quickly formed an army formation and advanced to guard against possible attacks from the Song army. They established a reliable beachhead for the subsequent river-crossing teams, allowing them to cross the river safely.
A total of 50,000 troops crossed the Huaihe River at a very fast speed, taking two days and one night to cross the Huaihe River, leaving behind enough pontoons and escorting naval forces for the logistics troops to use.
During this period, except for a small group of Song army sentries who came to spy on the situation, only one person fled after being chased by Ming army cavalry. No Song army attacked again.
Not even the navy came to attack.
Soon, Zhou Zhi integrated his troops and directed the entire army to move south quickly, aiming directly at Shanyang County.
Based on the Song army's tactical characteristics of defending the river but not the Huaihe River, Zhou Zhi initially judged that Huainan did not have a strong Song army to defend it.
However, on the evening of March 21, according to the latest intelligence, Song general Liu Qi did not agree with Song Ting's strategy and repeatedly requested to garrison Huainan, so Song Ting allowed his tactical actions.
It is said that Liu Qi has begun to lead his army across the river to Huainan, and it is unknown what tactical arrangements he will make.
But in just one or two days, even if Liu Qi could lead his army across the river, he would not have time to make tactical arrangements.
So Zhou Zhi decided to take a preemptive strike and catch Liu Qi by surprise.
Not long after the main force of the army gathered, Zhou Zhi learned that the vanguard cavalry had occupied Shanyang County——
The Song army did not seem to intend to hold on to Shanyang County. The Ming army's vanguard withdrew before it arrived, leaving behind an intact city and a city full of people.
According to what was learned afterwards, the Shanyang County magistrate and the Chuzhou governor had no guts to fight the Ming army. The Song army had not deployed a large-scale resistance army in Chuzhou, and Liu Qi's troops were nowhere to be seen.
So when they learned that the Ming army had begun to cross the river, the bureaucrats in Shanyang County hurriedly fled south for their lives, without even thinking about defending the city.
As soon as the officials left, all the small armed forces in Shanyang County fled, including some wealthy households, for fear of being implicated in the war and dying without a burial place.
All the landowners and gentry who could escape ran away, and those who couldn't escaped formed a stronghold to defend themselves. In the entire county, only ordinary people who could not escape were left behind, and they were made dumplings by the vanguard of the Ming army.
Fortunately, they encountered a Ming army with strict military discipline. Zhou Zhi left a small force to garrison Shanyang, then opened the treasury of Shanyang County to distribute food, and posted a notice to calm the people, explaining that in addition to the troops maintaining law and order, the rest of the troops None of them entered the city.
Then he really didn't enter the city, but quickly led the army southward.
Zhou Zhi followed the canal waterway all the way south. On March 26, the vanguard of the Ming army once again occupied the undefended Baoying County.
The situation in Baoying County is basically the same as that in Shanyang County. All the officials and upper-class people who can escape have fled, leaving the common people who cannot escape "waiting for death."
Zhou Zhi repeated his old tricks to appease people's hearts. He did not stop and continued southward. Instead, he fought all the way into the Gaoyou Army and occupied Gaoyou County on March 28. He rested in Gaoyou County for two days while waiting for the logistics troops. , on the one hand, it also allows the troops and horses to rest more.
At the same time, Zhou Zhi sent a large number of sentries south to spy on the Song army in Yangzhou.
A few days ago, Zhou Zhi learned that Liu Qi had decided to lead his army to defend Huainan. As Yangzhou was an important town in Huainan, Liu Qi's army must first garrison in Yangzhou and then go north.
Although it is too late for them to do so now, the Ming army has already advanced to Gaoyou and has taken the initiative. The best choice for the Song army at this time is to defend Yangzhou and protect the south crossing route Guazhoudu to prevent the Ming army from using Guazhoudu to go to Jiangnan. .
Soon, news came from the sentinels that they had discovered a Song army of ten thousand people rushing to settle in Lujin Town, and seemed to be attacking northward.
Zhou Zhi was not surprised when he learned about it.
This period of time is enough for Liu Qi to know that the Ming army has begun to take action and is attacking the city as if it is an uninhabited territory, so he will inevitably react.
Zhou Zhi then inquired carefully and learned that the army in Lujin Town was led by Liu Qi's general Wang Gang. It had a size of ten thousand people and its military appearance was relatively neat and did not look like a mob.
Yes, a decent army finally arrived. If all the civil servants and generals of the Song Dynasty were like the runaway kings they met before, Zhou Zhi really doubted whether his army would be able to annex the Southern Song Dynasty.
It now appears that there were still some loyal ministers and good generals in the Southern Song Dynasty who dared to confront the Ming army head-on.
Of course he dared to confront Liu Qi head-on, but the original target of Liu Qi's sent Wang Gang was not Lujin Town, but Baoying County.
As early as early February, Liu Qi petitioned the court to change the strategy of defending the Yangtze River but not the Huaihe River, focusing on defending Huainan, using Huainan as a cover for Jiangnan to prevent Jiangnan from directly facing the Ming army's front.
Although Jiangnan has the Yangtze River as a natural barrier, the Yangtze River is very long. A large river crosses the east and west. There are many places suitable for the northern army to cross the river. If the troops are arranged from east to west, it is equivalent to a long snake formation. No matter where is blocked. Breaking through would lead to the loss of the entire Yangtze River defense line.
This is very unfavorable to the Jiangnan regime, so it has been said since ancient times that to defend the Yangtze River, one must defend the Huaihe River.
However, it was not until March 20 that Liu Qi received a reply from the court, saying that he was allowed to act in this way and that he was allowed to send troops to defend Huainan.
But it was too late. No matter how quickly Liu Qi acted, he could not establish a reliable Huaihe defense line before the Ming army was dispatched.
