Chapter 304
After the Battle of Qinghe.
When Shi Le was about to sell an omission to the Qingzhou Han army and lure the Qingzhou army to cross the river north, Liu Yu in Dongwu City already knew the same battle situation.
"So, although Zu Ti failed to win the battle with Hu Yanyan, his losses were not much?"
After Liu Yu read the letter in his hand, he asked Su Jun who sent the secret letter.
This Su Jun was from Changguang, Qingzhou. He led his subordinates to join the Qingzhou Army when they were separatist and independent. He had many achievements and was highly appreciated by Liu Yu.
Su Jun was appointed as the governor of Jizhou and was temporarily under the command of Zu Ti.
Because the information reported this time was of great importance, Su Jun was also Liu Yu's old subordinate and came here personally on Zu Ti's request.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Su Jun has a strong figure. Although he ran more than 200 miles, his energy is still intact.
"General Zu, although his army failed to defeat the enemy in two battles in Yangping County, most of the lost soldiers were newly attached refugees and powerful tribes. The soldiers led by General Zu did not suffer much losses."
After hearing this, Liu Yu nodded silently.
However, Yangping County will also be occupied by Hu Yanyan, which means that most of the southern side of Jizhou is exposed. If there is another mistake in Liaocheng, where Zu Ti is currently retreating, Liu Yu in Qinghe County will have to seize the time to consider withdrawing his troops and returning eastward. .
Otherwise, once Yangping and Liaocheng fall into the hands of Hu and Han, the final path of the Han army led by Liu Yu to return to Qingzhou will be cut off.
Ferry crossings suitable for tens of thousands of troops are not found everywhere on the Yellow River and Jishui River.
"Su Governor, in your opinion, can General Zu hold Liaocheng?" Liu Yu asked thoughtfully.
Zu Ti's failure to capture all of Yangping meant that the Han army in Jizhou was at risk of being attacked from the north and the south.
If the Liaocheng area is lost, the Han army in Jizhou will be 100% in danger of being attacked from the north and the south.
"In the opinion of General Zu, the soldiers entrusted to General Zu by Your Majesty are still well organized and their combat power has not decreased at all, but their numbers are a little small. But as long as General Zu integrates the powerful forces of various departments, it should not be difficult to defend Liaocheng. question."
Su Jun thought for a while and continued.
"What's more, Liaocheng is close to Jibei. If General Zu is in danger again, he can always ask for help from Jibei."
Liu Yu nodded, actually he thought so too.
He felt that the reason why Zu Ti was defeated by Hu Han Hu Yanyan in Yangping County was not a matter of military strategy, but a huge disparity in strength.
Zu Ti only had 3,000 Han soldiers in his hands, and the rest were refugees and powerful tribes gathered along the way. Hu Yanyan, the general of Hu and Han cavalry, had tens of thousands of Xiongnu cavalry in his hands. According to Su Jun's speculation, The number of Huns cavalry must be at least thirty to forty thousand.
Under such circumstances, despite being defeated, he was able to retain most of his strength, which was enough to show that Zu Ti had a method to advance and retreat.
"Okay, if that's the case, then you can go down and rest first. I'll write a handwritten letter to Zu Ti and take it back with me tomorrow." Liu Yu said calmly.
Su Jun immediately took the order and left.
"Your Majesty, Yangping County fell into the hands of the Hulu. If Hu Yanyan didn't care about Liaocheng's ancestors, but instead sent the whole army north to fight, plus the soldiers and horses in Shi Le's hands, wouldn't it be dangerous?"
As soon as Su Jun left, Cui Yu, who had been beside him, immediately said in a panic.
"Don't worry Cui Qing. In the Battle of Yangping, Zu Ti's new troops and horses failed to show their skills. When he returns to Liaocheng, with a little training, Liaocheng will be safe."
Liu Yu said easily.
"As long as Liaocheng is in hand, Qingzhou's reinforcements will continue to move northward. Hu Yanyan will definitely not dare to abandon Liaocheng."
Although Liu Yu said this, he actually felt a little unsure in his heart.
If Hu Yanyan relied on his cavalry to move quickly and risked going north to attack him, it would be very bad.
Therefore, the best way now is to deal with Shi Le on the north bank of Qinghe River more quickly and capture Xindu with lightning speed.
Once Shile in the north is defeated, the Huns soldiers in Yangping will no longer have the confidence to go north.
"Mr. Cui, how are the preparations for the boat trip going?"
Liu Yu turned to Cui Yu and asked.
Now the best way to cross the North to attack the Hulu seems to be to prepare boats and rafts to build pontoon bridges.
Otherwise, there is no better way to allow tens of thousands of troops to cross the river in a very short time.
"Don't worry, your majesty. I have sent all the members of the clan out to supervise the process. It's just that it will take some time to prepare suitable wood. I'm afraid it will take two or three days to complete."
Cui Yu responded immediately.
When Liu Yu heard this, he felt a little anxious. Cui Yu's study of classics was good, but he was far from practical.
It's just a raft for a pontoon, not a ship for long voyages, but it still takes so long.
However, Liu Yu was anxious in his heart, but he didn't say much.
Nowadays, the specific implementation of Dongwu City's population, money and food still requires Cui Yu's efforts. Even if he is urged to prepare faster, it may not be much faster.
Instead, Liu Yu encouraged Cui Yu again, in exchange for Cui Yu's promise to revive the Han Dynasty after death.
At this time, the guard general Zhao Kun came.
"Your Majesty, no luck, it's snowing!"
Liu Yu was shocked when he heard this. The weather has been as cold as winter in the past two days.
He originally thought that the late Western Jin Dynasty was also in a cold period in climate history, a more severe spring cold.
But I didn't expect that just after the first lunar month, it would snow again.
"It's really snowing!"
Liu Yu led a group of people outside the house. The heavy and gloomy sky was filled with gray clouds, and large flakes of snow fell to the ground amidst the roar of the north.
"Your Majesty, our soldiers all have clothing to keep out the cold, but the newly arrived refugees don't have much thick clothing. Plus they have to do all kinds of chores, I'm afraid they will die from frostbite." Zhao Kun approached Liu Yu and said.
These refugees who accompanied the Han army in Qingzhou now need to do a lot of woodcutting, guarding, building camps, and making boats and rafts. All of them are outdoor work. Once the heavy snow falls, if they do not want to delay their work time, they must give They add warm clothing.
Otherwise, there will definitely be a lot of frostbite or even freezing to death.
After Liu Yu heard this, he didn't have time to respond.
Cui Yu, who was next to him, spoke first.
"Your Majesty, leave it to me at this time. I will surely prepare clothes to keep out the cold!"
"If that's the case, Mr. Cui, you have done me a great favor!"
Liu Yu immediately said happily.
Although he knew that the real number of refugees who needed warm clothing was only two to three thousand people. This kind of abnormal weather would pass in three or four days, and other people could cope with it just by carrying it.
However, Cui Yu's positive approach made Liu Yu very happy.
After receiving Liu Yu's approval, Cui Yu retreated happily as if he had received preferential treatment.
Seeing Cui Yu's expression and state, Zhao Kun next to him was a little confused.
Zhao Kun scratched his scalp and asked in confusion.
"Thousands of people have to donate cloth again, but this old Cui is so happy. Could it be that he is crazy? Otherwise, how could these high-ranking people be so generous?"
When Liu Yu heard this, he didn't answer and smiled softly.
"The Cui family of Qinghe, such a noble family, how can the leader of such a large family be so mad at gains and losses? He is so happy, so he has a reason to be happy!"
Zhao Kun blinked his bean-like eyes, looked at Liu Yu and asked.
"Your Majesty, did you promise to give him a promotion?"
"No."
"Then are you going to agree to marry his girl?"
Liu Yu curled his lips and said disdainfully.
"Hey, how can we use these cliché methods to deal with scholars!"
Qinghe, North Bank.
At this time, all the flat land was covered with thick white snow, leaving only the winding Qinghe River, like a big blue snake, passing through the middle of the snow-covered land.
Shi Le, leading many of his troops, was standing on horseback on the bank of the Qinghe River, not avoiding the violent storm and snow, looking towards Dongwu City on the south bank of the Qinghe River.
A Jie man wrapped in a fox fur coat showed an old face, with a pair of light green eyes shining with a light that was inconsistent with his age.
"General, this is God's will! If it snows heavily today, most of the Jin refugees in Dongwu will not have enough to eat and no clothes to cover their bodies. They will definitely freeze to death and get a lot of frostbite."
A Jiehu general said happily.
"Yes, General, I think this heavy snow will not stop for a day or two. I am afraid it will not stop. At least within two or three days, the Qingzhou thieves will not be able to cross the river to attack."
"That's right, these Qingzhou thieves won't dare to fight if the heavy snow makes it difficult for infantry soldiers to move."
These generals under Shi Le were happy to delay the Qingzhou Army's attack for a few more days.
At the same time, Shi Le felt a little relaxed.
With the heavy snow now, even if the Han army in Qingzhou got news of Zu Ti's defeat and wanted to flee south, they would not be able to run fast at all.
Therefore, Shi Le hoped in his heart that the snow would fall heavier and the weather would be colder!
"General, the general's son-in-law, because he came in a hurry, lacks thick clothes. If he doesn't find a way to keep warm, he may freeze to death and get frostbite."
A handsome man from Jin Dynasty said to Shi Le.
"However, there are not many furs and silks in the army now, so there is really nothing we can do." Shi Le said with some embarrassment.
"What's so difficult about this? Further north, there are many villages. As long as we search more, there will be no shortage of clothes!"
Shi Hu next to him said indifferently.
Upon hearing what Shi Hu said, not only those generals from the Jie people who were prone to looting, but also Zhang Jack and other Jin marshals all opened their eyes wide with greedy expressions.
Although the area north of Qinghe has been occupied by Youzhou before, most of the people's assets have been retained. If they can take this opportunity to plunder, they will be eager to do so.
"Yes, General, now our soldiers are short of many other supplies besides clothing." Zhang Jack said immediately.
Shi Le, who was next to him, already knew the thoughts of these generals very clearly.
Although Shi Le was determined to run the place and leave some reputation for benevolence and righteousness, the top priority now was to protect himself and defeat the Qingzhou Han army on the south bank.
"Okay, each of your ministries is allowed to send a small amount of manpower to search for some cold clothes and other items." After Shi Le finished speaking, he continued with a straight face.
"However, this time it is only for the soldiers to keep out the cold. You are not allowed to rob the people at will, let alone kill!"
Everyone was overjoyed when they heard the words and agreed with a bang, sweeping away the sluggish appearance of the confrontation with the Qingzhou Han army in the previous few days.
"Youhou, please also ask the governor Youhou to lead the ministries to send manpower. We can't delay the important task of river prevention!" Shi Le said to Zhang Bin.
"General, don't worry. I will order all ministries to settle the important tasks of river defense first, and then allocate idle manpower to search for horse materials." Zhang Bin said.
"Well, I'll be relieved if your right lord will take care of this matter."
After most of the generals had retreated and were about to start looting their old businesses, the old man from the fox-fur Jie man who had been beside him suddenly spoke.
"General, you should take care of the people. Now that it's snowing heavily today and the officers and soldiers in the army are short of food and clothing, why shouldn't the same be true for the people?"
When Shi Le heard this, he immediately became solemn.
"Great monk, what you said is absolutely true! I was just in a hurry and neglected this matter," Shi Le said innocently.
It turns out that this old Jie man wrapped in fur is none other than Fotucheng, an eminent monk from the Western Regions.
Cheng Xia, who had been accompanying Shi Le, heard Fo Tucheng's words. Although there was no change in his face, there was a burst of curse in his heart.
"You monk, if you really sympathize with the people, why didn't you say it just now? Now that all the ministries have gone back to mobilize their manpower and are about to set out to plunder, you are saying these pretentious words to the general."
"General, it seems that to practice the way of accumulating Dharma, you need to study harder and practice harder." Fotucheng said to Shi Le in a serious voice.
"What the great monk said is absolutely true. I will definitely practice more!" Shi Le said piously.
By this time, the sky had become gloomier, the cold wind was getting stronger and stronger, and the soft snowflakes had turned into knives that scratched the skin on the face.
"General, let's go back, the wind and snow are really too heavy!" Cheng Xia squinted his eyes, stared at the wind and snow and advised Shi Le.
When Shi Le heard this, he nodded, then turned his horse's head and prepared to return to the camp.
Suddenly, after taking two steps, Fotucheng, wrapped in a fox fur, spoke a few words to Shi Le in Jie language.
Shi Le's expression changed, and then he and Fo Tucheng returned to the bank of Qinghe River.
Cheng Xia couldn't understand Jieren's words and could only watch all this with surprise.
I saw Shi Le and Fo Tucheng dismounting from their horses on the bank, stretching out their palms to test the water surface of the Qinghe River.
"Oh, it turns out I'm afraid that the water surface of Qinghe River will freeze." Cheng Xia suddenly realized.
"This clear river water has been flowing continuously. Even if this severe cold comes for another three to five days, it will be absolutely impossible for the flowing river surface to freeze."
