Liu Zhiyuan actually really needed the Khitan army to move south, and he didn't mainly need Khitan troops, but wanted to take advantage of the Khitan's power.
This sounds a bit magical. The Khitans were defeated twice by me, Saint Zhang, in three years, and two emperors were killed. What kind of power does he still have? Is it the power of being slapped in the face?
But actually speaking, they really do.
Since Li Siyuan, Emperor Mingzong of the later Tang Dynasty, transferred most of the warriors from Hebei and Hedong to Tokyo, the Khitans have gradually transformed from the treacherous people who were beaten by Li Cunxu to a threat.
After Li Congke entered Luoyang, the situation intensified. When Shi Jingtang betrayed the country, the Khitan threat to Hebei almost reached its peak. Finally, Yelu Deguang entered Tokyo.
It can be seen that the rise of the Khitans and their psychological advantage over Hebei were built up bit by bit.
Then this kind of subtle influence for more than twenty years cannot disappear in an instant.
From the perspective of future generations, the Khitan nation is far from being comparable to the Huns and Turks in the past, because it has too many attributes of fishing, hunting and farming, and its control over the grassland is not so strong.
Even if it was the Liao Kingdom in history, if they were born in the early Han and early Tang Dynasties, they would have been beaten to a pulp long ago.
But it is impossible for people of this era to have such a vision of traveling through time. In their view, this is the time when the Chu and Han Dynasties were competing for the throne at the end of the Qin Dynasty, and when the heroes were fighting for hegemony at the end of the Sui Dynasty, the Khitans were of course the Huns of the Han Dynasty, and the Huns of the Tang Dynasty. Turks.
Moreover, they still don’t know that Yelu Ruan has knelt down again, so they will still regard the Khitan as the representative of the grassland empire.
If Liu Zhiyuan did not win over this grassland empire, then he would be using a small corner of Hedong to compete with the Central Plains, and his chances of winning would definitely not be high.
If the Khitan is involved, it will be easy to think that the entire grassland is supporting Liu Zhiyuan, and it is even easier to think of the situation between Shi Jingtang and Li Congke.
Therefore, Liu Zhiyuan has been anxiously waiting for the arrival of the Khitan army. Only when the Khitans come and show compliance with Liu Zhiyuan's command can he show to the local tycoons in Hebei, especially Beizhou and the Fu family, that he has the ability to compete with Zhang Xi for the world. Ability.
This is what happens when people get older. They want everything to be done properly and step by step.
Fifty-two-year-old Liu Zhiyuan has long lost the determination and ambition he had in the past to reach the high position of Jiedushi within a few years from a small school. Now he is like a lion in his twilight years.
Wang Jun tried hard to persuade Liu Zhiyuan that Fu Yanqing only had more than 3,000 people in Beizhou, and there were Fu family members in the city who were connected with them. As long as Liu Zhiyuan made up his mind, he would let the Hedong Army attack fiercely for fifteen days. Under the threat of life and death, , Beizhou City will be in chaos.
But Liu Zhiyuan has always been hesitant, always imagining that someone like Fu Yanqing, who was born in the martial arts of Hedong and Daibei, could open the city to join him and set a good example for the rest of the world, so he kept trying to persuade him to surrender.
Liu Zhiyuan stubbornly believed that although Fu Yanqing married all his daughters to Zhang Yan, the entire Fu family was rooted in the Hedong and Daibei Wuxun groups, and one daughter was not enough to get them all on board Zhang Yan's ship.
This theory is actually correct, but there is a premise, that is, Liu Zhiyuan at least has the military strength to match Zhang Yan, as well as the ability and age to match Zhang Yan.
If Liu Zhiyuan can account for two of these three items, the Fu family, whose entire family started from Wuxun in Hedong and Daibei, will definitely follow Liu Zhiyuan.
It's a pity that Liu Zhiyuan didn't occupy any of these three items.
In terms of military strength, Fu Yanqing knew very well that Liu Zhiyuan had already mobilized three feet from Hedong and one from three feet, but Zhang Yan had mobilized at most 30% of his strength.
And just this 30% of the power is enough to suppress Hedong.
If the situation is desperate, if Zhang Zhi mobilizes like Liu Zhiyuan, he can pull out at least 300,000 people, not to mention the elite level of the army, armor, weapons, etc., and Hedong is even more incomparable.
In Fu Yanqing's eyes, Zhang Zhou is now close in strength to the Zhu Liang who suppressed the entire Hedong and Daibei Wuxun Group back then, and is still the same Zhu Liang in Zhu Wen's hands.
In the past, when Zhu and Wen were powerful, Li Keyong was trapped in a corner of Hedong, and finally died of depression. How could Liu Zhiyuan, a beggar's version of Hedong, compete with the Central Plains?
Secondly, in terms of ability, after spending some time with Zhang Xi, Fu Yanqing was very sure that Zhang Xi had received a very systematic and comprehensive education.
Whether it is his understanding of the general trend of the world, the design of national construction, his understanding of government affairs, or his speculation on the thoughts of Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, Mohism, Huang, and Lao Zhu, he has a very unique and lofty vision.
In contrast, Liu Zhiyuan had almost no knowledge of these things except for fighting.
He still looked like a typical warrior at this time, and his understanding of the country and the court was only at the level of tax collection and official promotion.
To put it bluntly, in their eyes, the country and the court are just tools used internally to divide the spoils.
Although from some perspectives, this is indeed the case, when the country and the court only have this function, it will be a disaster for the world and everyone.
Zhang Yan and Fu Yanqing discussed their plans for the country and the court.
Regarding Zhang Gao's proposal, we should build the country internally with benevolence, legislate with leniency, be loyal and trustworthy, be guided by etiquette, and teach the people to be good. So that the generals will not dare to abuse the law with their strength, and the civil servants will not dare to use their power for personal gain, so that all the people will be at peace, and the world will be in peace.
Externally, they use etiquette and law as armor, and culture as war, to strengthen China and control all directions. For example, in the story of the Emperor of Zhou, the kings of Xia and the barbarians respect Zhou etiquette, but each has his or her own differences.
Zhang Yan's ideas made Fu Yanqing's heart surge with excitement, as if he had opened the door to a new world. He was so excited that he burst into tears on the spot, wishing he could have been born twenty years later to follow the Holy Lord.
This kind of great spiritual shock that transcends the physical reality cannot be shaken by Liu Zhiyuan's old tricks of appointing officials and making wishes.
Therefore, Fu Yanqing took all the sugar-coated bullets fired by Liu Zhiyuan, and while he was making excuses, he investigated the unrest within the Fu family and Beizhou.
By the time Liu Zhiyuan came to his senses, everyone in Beizhou City who had anything to do with him had been uprooted. Feng Hui and Luo Shande also led an army of 8,000 people and set up camp more than ten miles southwest of Beizhou.
Only then did Liu Zhiyuan realize that he had been fooled. Furious, he immediately ordered the Hedong Army to prepare to attack the city, but by this moment, it was already too late.
First, his half-brother Murong Yanchao, who controlled the Tuyuhun cavalry for him, came to report and found traces of the cavalry brigade passing through Beizhou heading north.
Moreover, the detective horses under Murong Yanchao were unable to cross Wuyi to the Wuqiang area and continue to go north to check.
Everyone in the Hedong Army was shocked, thinking that the Zhou cavalry had passed through Beizhou in advance to fight the Khitans. Liu Zhiyuan was even ready to abandon Beizhou and retreat from Qinghe to the Julu County of Xingzhou, which he firmly controlled.
But then, the second news came that Guo Wei was defeated at the mouth of Hezhang Valley, losing more than 6,000 soldiers and horses.
The one who defeated him was the main force of the Zhou army with a yellow umbrella cover and a silver-edged three-chen flag. There were at least 40,000 people. The famous Zhou army generals Yan Jin, Zhang Zhaozhong, Zhang Zhaojiu, Zhang Zhaojun, etc. were all there.
At this time, the Hedong Army, which had almost wanted to retreat to the front line of Julu, calmed down again.
Because according to their calculations of Zhang Zhou's military strength, the core elite number is about 50,000.
At this time, Huangluo Umbrella appeared at the entrance of the Hezhang Valley, and a bunch of famous generals from the Zhou Kingdom appeared, easily defeating Guo Wei's more than 20,000 men. So those at the entrance of the Hezhang Valley must be the main force of the Zhou Kingdom.
If the main force of the Zhou Kingdom is at the entrance of Hezhang Valley, then those going through Beizhou will not be the main force. They should be a small number of elite cavalry, no more than 10,000 at most, going to delay the Khitan's march south.
The next day, more accurate information came. After Guo Wei was defeated at the mouth of Hezhang Valley, he was unable to gain a foothold along the Zhang River.
So he ordered Guo Jin to lead 3,000 elite soldiers and quickly entered Fuyang to defend it. He led more than 10,000 soldiers to retreat along the Zhang River and retreated to Shexian County in the east of the river. Only then did he stabilize his footing.
Shexian County is located on the Qingzhang River, a branch of the Zhanghe River. Guo Wei transferred the supplies from Hezhang to Shexian County, so it became the base camp for hoarding half of the military supplies of the Hedong Army.
Fuyang, which the Hedong Army used to control the Zhanghe River, became an isolated city. The Zhangshui River from Shexian County to Fuyang was also completely controlled by the Zhou army.
This time Liu Zhiyuan was trapped and forced to make a choice.
Because at this time, there were only two roads to go from the Yellow River north to Youzhou, namely the Zhangshui River and the Yongji Canal.
Fuyang is the key point for the Hedong Army to block the Zhang River, and Qinghe County, the capital of Beizhou Prefecture, is an important hub for controlling the Yongji Canal.
Now that Zhang Fuyang is besieged and Qinghe, the capital of Beizhou, has not been captured, Liu Zhiyuan's military strength will inevitably only be able to save one side.
Wang Jun and Su Fengji both urged Liu Zhiyuan to make a decisive decision immediately, leave Qinghe in Beizhou, retreat westward to Xing and Mingzhou, and then go south to relieve the siege of Fuyang, trying to ensure that the area from Shexian County in the east of Hedong to Fuyang in Xiangzhou was worry-free.
Because Zhangshui originates from Hedong, it is actually the lifeline of the Hedong Army. Although Beizhou is also important, it is only a must-conquer area for the Hedong Army's advancement.
In other words, Fuyang and Zhangshui are the lifelines of the Hedong Army, while Beizhou and Yongji Canal are the career lines.
Although they are extremely passive if they cannot capture Beizhou, they will not be defeated immediately. There may still be opportunities and turning points.
But without Fuyang and Zhangshui unable to be controlled, the supply of the entire Hedong Army would immediately become a big problem.
At this time, Hebei was experiencing wars every year and could not afford the supply of an army of 50,000 to 60,000 people. Unless Liu Zhiyuan killed the local tyrants in Hebei north of Xiangzhou and south of Hengzhou and used their money and food to ensure the supply of the army.
But if that really happens, these local tycoons who still support the Hedong Army will definitely be pushed to the Zhou side, and then it will really be over.
So at this moment, the best way is to keep Fuyang and take a defensive position to fight against the Zhou army. If successful, Xu Tu can go south, but if not, he can retreat to the east of Hedong.
However, this correct opinion was stuck again when it came to Liu Zhiyuan. He could not make a decision for two days in a row. Wang Jun was so anxious that he could only go to see Liu Zhiyuan alone at night.
When Wang Jun met Liu Zhiyuan, it was quite late and Liu Zhiyuan was about to go to bed.
Wang Jun stepped forward, grabbed Liu Zhiyuan's sleeve and shouted softly: "Does the king want to trap these 40,000 soldiers to death?"
Liu Zhiyuan lost his former majesty and let Wang Jun pull his sleeves, helplessly sitting on the edge of the bed. He did not answer Wang Jun's question, but talked to himself about something else.
"It has been over thirty years since a certain family joined the army. How can An not know that he is in danger right now?
But a certain man, who is already fifty-two years old, suffers from pain in his legs and cannot walk fast. If there is a thunderstorm and damp weather, his whole body will feel as painful as a gun prick from his old wounds.
To send out troops today, the sky is three feet high east of the river, and the people are boiling with resentment. This situation can still exist at this moment because everyone in the world is waiting and watching, thinking that someone has the possibility of taking over the Central Plains.
If we leave without fighting, we will definitely lose the popularity of the world. Even if we retreat to Xing, Ming and other places, can we really maintain the stalemate? Can a certain person return to Hedong? "
Wang Jun had prepared a lot of speeches, but at this moment he couldn't continue because Liu Zhiyuan's words had already exhausted the pros and cons.
Retreating at this moment is not a disaster for the Hedong Army, but it is a disaster for Liu Zhiyuan.
As for the Hedong Army, even if they wanted to come to Shao tomorrow, they would not kill them all immediately. At worst, they would be deprived of their honorary titles and official positions.
However, I should be able to keep my personal property, and living in Tokyo or Luoyang for retirement is no problem, but my life is just not satisfactory.
But Liu Zhiyuan couldn't do it. In these years, Zhang Zhou, who refused, was transferred three times, expelled the envoys at least seven or eight times, and detained An Shuqian who went to persuade him. All the escape routes were blocked.
Once this is revealed, not only will the situation at this time be unsustainable, but Liu Zhiyuan's family members who are far away in Hedong may also be sold at a higher price.
Wang Jun sighed secretly. When he was in Hedong, everyone thought it was easy to go south from Jinyang to Tokyo, because it had been done this way for the past few decades.
In addition, Zhang Yan was not from the Hedong and Daibei systems, and Liu Zhiyuan was well-liked by the people of Hedong and Daibei. Many people believed that as long as he raised the banner, the world's heroes would follow suit.
Unfortunately, in reality, it was not convenient to leave Hebei in the east. Not many heroes from Hebei states sincerely submitted, let alone old people from Hedong such as Fu Yanqing, Gao Xingzhou, and An Shenqi, none of them came to submit.
Later, he wanted to take advantage of Zhang Zhounan's expedition to the Tang Dynasty to go south, but Zhang Gao mobilized all the Hexi troops. As a result, the Hedong side did not obtain accurate information. Everyone thought that Zhang Gao was Du Chongwei who was going to conquer Songzhou.
Considering that Du Chongwei only had a few thousand people in his hands, they must have been quickly dealt with.
Unexpectedly, Zhang Gao went to fight against the Southern Tang Dynasty. By the time Hedong received the news, Zhang Gao's battle of Yizheng was almost over, and he missed a good opportunity.
Liu Zhiyuan could only order Guo Wei to go south despite the wind and snow, but it was still a step too late. Zhou general Yan Jin had already taken control of Yedu, blocking the Hedong Army's opportunity to go south.
Then due to issues with food, fodder and Khitan, it has been delayed until today.
Their own side was ready, but Zhou Guo was also ready. Before the decisive battle between the two sides, the Hedong Army felt terrible pressure.
Wang Jun also understood at this time that Liu Zhiyuan still had hopes for the Khitan troops and horses, hoping that the Khitan troops and horses could defeat Zhou Guochuan's cavalry and join them in Beizhou.
But Wang Jun understands that there is a high probability that there is no chance!
The Khitans were defeated by Zhang Zhi in Yanshi and even the emperor was killed. They were so frightened that they could only support and strengthen their momentum. If the Khitan soldiers and horses were to encounter Zhou's Liangzhou horses, even if it was forty thousand against ten thousand, it would be very difficult. It's hard to say there's a chance of winning.
Understanding Liu Zhiyuan's difficulties, Wang Jun thought for a while, then loosened his grip on Liu Zhiyuan's sleeves and whispered: "If your Majesty wants to wait for the Khitan troops to arrive, you can't just sit here and wait.
I asked the king to appoint Liu Chong, the defense envoy of Sizhou, to stay behind the troops in Hedong and guard the Taiyuan Valley to prevent accidents.
Then he ordered Murong Yanchao, the commander of the horse army, to lead his troops out of Jizhou. He must break through the Zhou army's blockade and find out the reason for the delay in the arrival of Khitan troops. "
Liu Chong is the founder of the Northern Han Dynasty in history and the half-brother of Liu Zhiyuan. He currently leads the defense envoy of Sizhou and is actually the inspection envoy of the three cities of Taiyuan who stays in Taiyuan.
The purpose of adding him to stay as a soldier in Hedong was to allow Liu Chong to have all the power, so as to prevent someone from murdering Liu Zhiyuan's family when the situation on the battlefield in Hebei was unfavorable.
Murong Yanchao is Liu Zhiyuan's half-brother. He is currently the commander of the Hedong Horse Army. He controls Liu Zhiyuan's 2,000 elite cavalry and 5,000 Tuyuhun cavalry in Hedong. He is also someone Liu Zhiyuan trusts.
This was the proposal that suited Liu Zhiyuan's appetite. He was actually thinking about it, so he quickly nodded.
Moreover, Liu Zhiyuan also told Wang Jun that if Murong Yanchao still could not break through the Zhou army's blockade within five days, then he would break camp and retreat to the Julu area.
There are some things in this world that are a bit metaphysical. Those who set flags randomly will often be beaten by reality.
Liu Zhiyuan had just said that he would withdraw his troops if there was no news in five days. Murong Yanchao received the news immediately.
In fact, Murong Yanchao led five thousand cavalry to camp near Wuqiang County and had been trying his best to find out about the Zhou army.
But he didn't dare to go too far, because after he was kidnapped by Du Chongwei and surrendered to the Khitan, he was released by Zhang Yan in Yanshi City.
After his release, Murong Yanchao spent some time in the Zuoshen Guards composed of the former Imperial Guards of the Later Jin Dynasty. Later, after receiving a summons from Liu Zhiyuan, he abandoned his official position and ran back to Hedong with his confidants.
Therefore, compared to the generals from Hedong, he had a deeper understanding of the power of Zhou's Liangzhou horses from Hexi.
Compared to them, these Tuyuhun Rangers under his command were nothing at all.
Even the so-called Hedong Jingqi, after losing the horse farms in Yunzhou and north, is still far behind the Hexi Cavalry.
Therefore, Murong Yanchao didn't dare to go too far. If he really had the courage to send out thousands of cavalry, it would be impossible for him to break through the blockade. He just didn't dare.
But after receiving the order written by Liu Zhiyuan himself, Murong Yanchao also knew that the matter was urgent, so he could only quickly select two thousand elite cavalry to go north to investigate. However, before the team set off, an overwhelming rout arrived.
After the Khitans were defeated at Lutai in Cangzhou, a considerable number of them did not go north, but ran south in a panic.
Murong Yanchao thus obtained more accurate information. Although some of the defeated troops said that Lutai was defeated and even the emperor was dead, others said that only the periphery had been dispersed and the army had returned to Youzhou safely.
But no matter what, Murong Yanchao got two pieces of news. One was that the number of Zhou cavalry who raided the Khitan was not large, and the other was that the Khitan army would definitely not go south.
At this moment, Murong Yanchao's decision and experience saved his life. When his general Liu Ci was still urging him to report to Liu Zhiyuan first before making a decision, Murong Yanchao shouted loudly.
"Those who can defeat the Khitans with ten thousand horses must be the world's most elite warriors like Zhou Yulin Guards and Jinwu Guards. I am afraid of them. Who among you can stop Murong Baipao and Li Shouchang (Li Cunhui)?"
After saying that, without waiting for others to object, Murong Yanchao immediately ordered Pegasus to inform Liu Zhiyuan while the whole army moved south.
Murong Yanchao's decision was correct, and he also saved the lives of these thousands of cavalry. Only three hours after they broke camp, Zhang Zhaojie (Qiongre Duojin) arrived with a thousand fine cavalry.
Zhang Zhaojie, who was running wildly but failed to make a surprise attack, could only follow the horse's hoof prints all the way south and finally caught up with Murong Yanchao's troops in the northeast of Hengshui County on the bank of Zhang River.
The two sides fought for an hour in the north of Hengshui County. Although Zhang Zhaojie had rushed 200 miles to arrive, both men and horses were exhausted, but they still achieved excellent results.
With 700 cavalry, he charged at the Hedong Army's more than 4,000 cavalry. With one attack, he knocked down the left camp of the Hedong Army's elite cavalry led by Liu Ci. Liu Ci, relying on his good water ability, threw himself into the Zhang River and swam to the other side, only to barely escape.
And his collapse soon caused the collapse of the Hedong Tuyuhun Qingqi that was harassing them on both sides.
In the end, Murong Yanchao saw that the situation was critical, burned the pontoon bridge on the Zhang River, abandoned the 2,000 riders north of the Zhang River, and then ran away with the remaining 2,000 people.
Zhang Zhaojie did not have enough boats to cross the river, so he could only search for civilians to repair the pontoon bridge while sending people to report the battle situation to Zhang Zhao.
When the news reached the Hedong military camp, Liu Zhiyuan was shocked. He did not expect that the Khitan people were so weak that they could be defeated so easily by a surprise attack.
But at the critical moment, Liu Zhiyuan still showed sufficient military quality. He first sent troops to storm Qinghe, the capital of Beizhou, and even the tooth soldiers of the Hedong Army went to the battlefield.
Feng Hui and Luo Shande, who had been playing whack-a-mole with Liu Zhiyuan south of Beizhou, quickly sent troops to Qinghe City to contain the Hedong Army.
The two sides fought from sunrise to late at night. The battle was quite fierce. The Hedong Army even boarded the city several times.
On the second day, the Hedong Army still sent troops to attack Qinghe City. The war drums were still loud, but the intensity was lower.
It was intense in the morning, then subsided by noon, and in the afternoon it almost returned to its previous low-intensity state.
Feng Hui, Luo Shande and Fu Yanqing's attention was all drawn to the siege, and no one noticed anything unusual.
As a result, on the fourth day, several pontoons on the Yongji Canal were controlled by the Hedong Army, and fires suddenly broke out.
Only then did the three people realize that something was wrong, and quickly sent out troops to see. There were only a thousand old and weak people in the Hedong Army barracks, and the rest of the main force had already crossed the river and ran away.
Feng, Luo, and Fu suddenly realized, especially Feng Hui and Luo Shande, that the Khitan troops must have been defeated.
The three of them sent messengers quickly north while repairing the pontoon bridge.
At the same time, Zhang Gao led his army to Hengshui. This was not because Zhang Gao did not understand the importance of troops and speed, but because after this long-distance attack on the Khitan army, the food and grass he carried was insufficient.
It doesn't matter to people, they can still endure this bit of hardship, but war horses can't.
Although there is no shortage of green forage and hay, high-protein soybeans, black beans, brome (oats), etc. are no longer available.
A top-notch war horse like Zhou Jun Hexi that can explode at high speeds and carry heavy loads cannot run at all without these things.
If they were used without hesitation, it would cost too much, and it would be unworthy to waste thousands of good horses just for the sake of a surprise attack.
Therefore, Zhang Yan could only concentrate on supplying concentrated feed to Zhang Zhaojie, allowing him to attack first, while he led his army southward at a speed slightly higher than that of the infantry.
This incident also reminded Zhang Yan that he should pay more attention to the cultivation of hard-working Mongolian horses in the future.
On May 13, a courier sent by Feng Hui, Luo Shande, and Fu Yanqing found Zhang Yan. At the same time, the three of them also sent elite cavalry to touch the tail of the Hedong Army and were fighting with the Hedong cavalry behind them.
After Zhang Gao received the news, he was not in a hurry. Since the surprise attack failed and he wanted to fight a grand battle, he only needed to know the whereabouts of the Hedong Army.
He simply stayed for a few days in Xindu County, the prefecture city of Jizhou, which later became Hengshui County, Hebei Province, and replenished concentrate feed for his war horses. The army rested for two days before starting the pursuit.
On May 19th, Zhang Yan gathered Luo Shande, Fu Yanqing, and Feng Hui's three troops of 10,000 people in Nangong. A total of 20,000 troops grabbed the tail of the Hedong Army and pursued them.
At the same time, Liu Zhiyuan, who had retreated to Pingxiang County in Xingzhou, could not get rid of the Zhou army's cavalry, so he simply retreated to the lower village of Jize County in the southwest of Pingxiang County. He had 40,000 people standing on the Zhang River, intending to launch a coup. Use leisure to wait for work, add half a crossing and attack.
