"Wang Shangshu, please tell me and all my dear friends about the current war situation. How is the situation on the front line?"
Hearing the emperor call his name, Wang Bor, Minister of the Ministry of War, quickly handed over his hand: "I obey the order. Your Majesty, at present, the main battles are still divided into four directions. The Turkic Helian troops continue to attack Ma Hongjie's defense line, and the nearest battlefield is to the east. They are less than two hundred miles away. The Turkorian tribe is acting strangely and is believed to be showing signs of moving towards Yichuan."
"Yichuan?" Li Bing was slightly startled: "Isn't that the south of Luoyi? Could it be that he wants to join up with Lao Jianhua's rebels?"
"Indeed." Wang Bor said: "I and others also judged this way. Bao Yuchun has been moving frequently recently and has repeatedly tested our army's Shahe defense line. General Murong has repelled their attacks six times in a row. However, if Ronya really goes south , General Murong will face the danger of being attacked from both sides."
Li Bing said in a deep voice: "Is there any countermeasure?"
Wang Bor looked at Dong Tianxing next to him. Old Dong understood and answered for him: "While we informed General Murong and General Ma to be on guard, we also mobilized an additional 50,000 newly recruited soldiers to set up defenses in Yichuan to try to stop the Turks." People are going south.”
Li Bing thought for a moment and shook his head: "The new soldiers have poor combat capabilities and may not be able to stop the Turkic Temple Prince. In my opinion, we still have to rely on the veterans. How is Chang Tao? When can we drive away Li Bing? Qiang, turn around and support Murong Xue?"
Wang Bor responded: "Your Majesty, the Huaiyang rebels were repulsed three days ago. The Changda Guards are cleaning the battlefield and treating the wounded. They can set off after a short rest. I estimate that it will only take a few days or two. It’s up to you, and it won’t be later than the seventh day of this month at the latest.”
"Okay, Chang Tao performed well this time and taught the Huaiyang Army a lesson." Li Bing nodded slightly: "This time, Li Kuang is probably going to lose his money. Wang Aiqing, tell me about the military situation in the four directions. , there is one left, it should be from the Western Army, right?"
Wang Bor replied: "Yes, Your Majesty. Half a month ago, the Turkic prince Tanli suddenly surrendered, and the Zhenjiang army occupied Lanzhou without bloodshed. Later, Xu Youchang commanded an army of 200,000 to implement a strategic detour and encircle Tianshui. County. After six days of fierce fighting, the elite Tenth Legion of the Turkic Empire and the Golden Tribe were completely wiped out, and the legion commander, Count Lorencic, was killed on the spot."
As soon as these words came out, the entire court suddenly burst into cheers.
The great victory in Tianshui County heralded the Shengtang Dynasty's great counterattack against the Turkic invasion, which had truly arrived!
Li Bing was also very pleased with this, and rarely praised: "The Zhenjiang Army did a great job! The 10th Army of the Golden Clan was one of the main Turkic forces that attacked the imperial capital at the beginning, and their hands are stained with the blood of the loyal Xu family. Xu Youchang is doing this It can be regarded as seeking some justice for the family and Shengtang!"
Dong Tianxing said: "What your Majesty said is true. The Zhenjiang Army has regained Lanzhou and Tianshui one after another, so Baoji County will soon be there. Next, there will be the Imperial Capital! The day is not far when the shame of Shengtang will be washed away."
Li Jiangyao's previous analysis was indeed correct. When the news of victory came and the imperial capital was in sight, the imperial court, which was originally hesitant, was immediately full of confidence. From the emperor Li Bing to the civil and military officials, they all naturally began to consider the issue of marching eastward and regaining the imperial city as soon as possible.
Li Bing appeared to be in high spirits and ordered loudly: "Your military department should go back and sort out your thoughts and see how to mobilize your troops and generals to defeat the enemies of the Central Plains as soon as possible, then concentrate your strength and advance towards the imperial capital. The heroic spirit of the late emperor has been waiting for the Holy Spirit. Tang Zhanqi has been waiting for too long to return to the imperial capital."
After hearing this, Wang Boring and Dong Tianxing quickly accepted the order, saying that the Ministry of War would immediately start arranging counterattack matters.
However, the court thought well, but the reality was very cruel.
Even if the Ministry of War came up with a hundred counterattack strategies, they could not withstand the combined attack of Bao Yuchun and Ronya.
On the fifth day of June, the second day after Li Bing held the imperial meeting, 40,000 troops under the command of Prince Turkic Temple suddenly made a long-distance attack on Yichuan County.
The 50,000 soldiers who had just arrived here to set up defenses were completely defeated by the ferocious Turks overnight. The panicked new soldiers fled in all directions over the mountains and plains, abandoning their helmets and armor, and were in a miserable state.
The Turkic troops neither wasted time on the defeated army nor attacked the nearby eastern capital Luoyi. As soon as they succeeded, they immediately turned south and headed straight for the Shahe defense line a hundred miles away.
At this time, Murong Xue was commanding more than 80,000 Shengtang troops, struggling to resist Bao Yuchun's attack.
Although he had received Dong Tianxing's warning in advance and knew that the Turks had the intention to threaten Yichuan in the near future, he still could not expect that Roniya's troops would arrive so quickly!
And it is obvious that Bao Yuchun and Ronya maintain an extremely efficient communication. When the Turks came, it was when the rebel attack was at its most intense.
Under attack from both front and rear, Murong Xue tried her best but failed to withstand the enemy, and the Shahe defense line finally collapsed.
What followed was that the defensive battle turned into a breakout battle, and the breakout battle quickly turned into a scattered escape.
Murong Xue saw that there was no way to save the day, so she had to organize the existing troops and began to break out to the north.
When he fought his way back to the Eastern Capital, less than half of the original 80,000-strong army remained.
Shahe was defeated miserably, and the government and the public were shocked!
The Turks and rebels joined forces, and the south of Luoyi was no longer in danger, and the eastern capital was in danger of being attacked at any time. Since the fall of the imperial capital, Emperor Shengtang and the imperial court once again faced the enemy's blade!
At the same time, the Southern Army, which was trying its best to resist Helianxiong, was worried that its flanks would be attacked because of the large-scale detour made by the Temple Prince Ronya, so it had to actively shrink its defense line and retreat outside Luoyang City.
The 60,000 soldiers and horses responsible for guarding Wuguan immediately became a lone army.
The entire war situation suddenly became extremely bad again.
The Turks seemed to be crazy, leaving the Xinjiang Army approaching the imperial capital alone and beating Li Bing hard at the risk of his life. Ronya, Helianxiong, Druhan, Durham, almost all the famous Turkic generals were dispatched, and the Golden Tribe's cavalry swept around, beating the imperial army back steadily.
Bao Yuchun also took advantage of the situation and conquered Ruzhou, Xuzhou, and Chenzhou. Half of the Central Plains area fell one after another and became the territory of the rebels.
Under such circumstances, let alone launch a counterattack and regain the imperial capital, whether the Eastern Capital can be preserved has become a big question.
In ten months, Ma Hongjie's Southern Army, Chang Tao's Liaodong Governor's Mansion, Li Meng's Yinshan Governor's Mansion, Xiao Hongyan's Hebei Daofu soldiers, plus the emperor's direct army under the command of Murong Xue and Gong Chengze, all gathered in Luoyi City and were ready. .
They all have the feeling that the Turks want to show off in the Eastern Capital!
Soon, the ideas of the Shengtang generals were confirmed. After sweeping away the surrounding counties and counties, 200,000 Turkic troops approached Luoyi from the west and south. At the same time, Bao Yuchun led one hundred thousand soldiers and horses under his command, also set out from Ruzhou and appeared in the southeast of Luoyi.
The imperial court set up a temporary headquarters in Longmen Town outside Dongdu City, with Ma Hongjie as the commander-in-chief, Murong Xue as the deputy commander-in-chief, Chang Tao as the army Sima, and Dong Tianxing as the army supervisor, to coordinate and command 650,000 troops, mainly light infantry. army.
To be honest, with 650,000 against 300,000, the Shengtang generals still felt very unsure.
Defending the city is not a big problem; but if the enemy only besieges and does not attack, the Shengtang Army will have nothing to do with the enemies outside the city.
There is a lack of cavalry and heavy infantry, what the hell are you doing!
The tense situation in Dongdu spread to Tianshui immediately. Li Jiangyao and Xu Youchang were also a little surprised by the Turks' actions. According to the enemy's current deployment, all the main elite forces have been transferred to the Luoyi front line, which means that the imperial capital's garrison strength is at an extremely dangerous threshold.
In other words, the imperial capital's defenses were fragile.
"Is Ashina Zhijin crazy?" Xu Youchang frowned: "Did he think he couldn't stop us at all, so he decided to give up and break the pot?"
Li Jiangyao thought about it and said: "I can understand his considerations to some extent. In the final analysis, Ashina Zhijin is still struggling, but he uses another method."
"What method?" Xu You grew up curious.
Li Jiangyao did not answer him in a hurry. He looked at the map carefully for a while and then said quietly: "He may be planning to make full use of the Turkic people's specialties to solve the current dilemma."
Xu Youchang thought for a while and suddenly realized: "You mean, the riding style of fighting that comes and goes like the wind?"
"That's about it." Li Jiangyao nodded: "Originally, guarding key cities and pass fortresses is what our Shengtang army is good at, but the Turks are just the opposite. They come and go like wind, invade like fire, and fight It means 'quick and flexible'. However, I found that since the occupation of the imperial capital, the Turks' fighting style has gradually changed. They actually lost their advantages and began to defend the city cautiously."
Xu Youchang nodded: "Well, that is indeed the case. If you think about it carefully, they were able to defeat the Zhenjiang Protectorate, the Fierce Blade Legion and the Long Sword Legion in succession at the beginning, and successfully conquered the two levels and captured the imperial capital precisely because they did not care about one city or one city. Gains and losses of land, even such a vast land in Western Xinjiang can be ignored and directly rush forward. Any opponent will be helpless in the face of this style. However, when the Turkic army centered on the imperial capital, they began to cherish those who had already When the territory is acquired, the characteristics of flexibility and speed are gone.”
"We both have the same view." Li Jiangyao agreed: "In recent years, the high mobility of the Turkic cavalry has not brought them any outstanding achievements. The main reason is the ideological changes of their commanders. There has been a change. When the cavalry starts to face the war with the thinking of infantry, it can only shrink its hands and make the fight more and more difficult."
Xu Youchang smiled sincerely and said: "So you judge that Ashina Zhijin intends to regain the soul of the Turkic army."
Li Jiangyao took a picture of the map: "I am becoming more and more convinced of this. A Turkic army that clings to the imperial capital is a lamb without a fighting spirit. Sooner or later, its blood will be drained! And a Turkic army that does not care about the imperial capital is A mad wolf is capable of tearing any prey to pieces. Think about it, a guerrilla army of two to three hundred thousand like horse bandits, relying on a fighting style to feed war, looting and raiding everywhere, who can stop it? them?"
Hearing this, Xu Youchang couldn't help but take a breath: "In that case, the Central Plains, Lianghuai, Jingxiang, and Jiangnan will all become the world of the Turks, and they will be able to run as they please without anyone being able to defeat them!"
