Zhaozhou, Baixiang.
Liu Chengyou led the Longqi Army and moved more than 30 miles north. It was only about 80 miles away from Luan City, a journey that started in the morning and arrived at night. The closer they get to the Khitan army, and the closer they get, the more cautious they become.
As the commander-in-chief, Liu Chengyou has inevitably been a little nervous recently, especially after Yelu Deguang's army arrived in Luan City. A huge burden is placed on me and I feel stressed.
While waiting for news from the Liao army, Liu Chengyou asked Xiang Xun to lead a group of soldiers to accompany him around to relieve his worries.
However, even after wandering around, nothing can be accomplished. In this era, when talking about Baixiang, people with a little knowledge will think of the "Battle of Baixiang" decades ago.
The Battle of Baixiang was an important turning point in the struggle for hegemony between Liang and Jin at the end of the reign of Liang Taizu Zhu Wen. It was of great strategic significance and ended with a great victory for the Jin army.
After this battle, the elite troops of Houliang suffered heavy losses and quickly went downhill, with their power shrinking to the south of Weibo. The Jin army gained great prestige, and the towns of Chengde (Wang Rong) and Yiwu (Wang Chuzhi) all turned against Li Cunxu, creating favorable conditions for Li Cunxu to unify Hebei and go south to destroy Liang.
Although he did not know the details of the Battle of Baixiang, Liu Chengyou still had some understanding, at least he knew the outcome.
Baixiang is located at the intersection of Huai River and Ji River. He reined his horse and stood on the water bank for a long time, watching the rushing water. It is said that the Liang and Jin armies faced off across the river here. Feeling the heat brought by the sun, Liu Chengyou pointed to the surroundings and said with emotion: "Zhuangzong almost established the historical direction of the Central Plains for decades with the battle of Baixiang. In less than forty years, there are not many battlefield relics left. The vicissitudes of the sea, the vastness of the country, the history of the Central Plains." That’s not the case…”
Xiang Xun followed, and after hearing Liu Chengyou's words, he couldn't help coughing and said: "Your Highness, although the Liang and Jin armies are facing each other across the Yehe River, the real decisive point of victory is in Gaoyi County in the north. "
"Oh?" Liu Chengyou didn't show any anger on his face. Instead, he humbly asked Xiang Xun for details.
Xiang Xun, on the other hand, spent some time and patiently told Liu Chengyou the story, and then accompanied him to watch the river scenery, with an expression of hesitation slowly appearing on his face.
"Speak up if you have anything to say!" Liu Chengyou said.
Hearing this, he cupped his hands towards Liu Chengyou, organized his words a little, and said to Xiang Xun: "It's been another half a month. Your Highness has been marching here and still has nothing to do. Too much time has been spent. I am deeply worried about this low-ranking official. I really don’t know what your highness’s purpose is…”
Liu Chengyou didn't say anything, but glanced at Xiang Xun, and saw him continue: "Please forgive me for speaking bluntly. His Highness has always been wise and wise. Since being ordered to go south and east, he has made numerous battles, large and small, and made decisions at the right time. Why did he do it this time?" It’s puzzling.”
As he said that, Xiang Xun showed a heavy look of worry: "Right now, the Khitan army has stopped at Luan City for two days. Our army is too close to the enemy and too dangerous!"
Liu Chengyou himself couldn't remember how many times Xiang Xun and Guo Rong had said such words of advice to him openly or privately.
In fact, at this moment, Liu Chengyou could not help but have some murmurs in his heart, but he concealed them very well. He has always maintained a closed face, which makes people completely confused about his thoughts. In recent days, Liu Chengyou has given people the impression that he can be described as headstrong.
"I don't know what you are talking about." Taking a calm breath, Liu Chengyou finally spoke, "confusing his heart": "I want to find a reliable foothold in several states in Hebei with Longqi, a dissatisfied army. Let’s try to revive again!”
"What do you want, Your Highness?" Xiang Xun was slightly surprised.
"Originally, the most suitable place is Yedu. However, Du Chongwei has tens of thousands of soldiers and horses to guard it, so he can't get it easily!" Liu Chengyou's thinking seemed to become clearer, and he said: "After much thought, I can see that there is a place where something can be done. There is only Zhenzhou, the old town of Chengde! When the Khitans withdraw, our army will follow their lead and take it."
"However, even if the Khitan retreats north, I'm afraid they won't give up on Zhenzhou easily. The Lord of Liao is a very human being, so he probably can't see the importance of Zhenzhou!" Xiang Xun thought for a while and raised a question.
After hearing the question, Liu Chengyou looked straight ahead and sighed in his heart, it's really not easy to fool him. Fortunately, a flying horse came and relieved Liu Chengyou's embarrassment.
The cavalry from the front came to report that the Liao camp in Luan City was wailing and wailing everywhere. Between the camps, there were many plain flags and white flags, stretching for more than ten miles...
In the central military camp, the generals and commanders gathered together. After listening to the report, everyone looked at each other in shock. Zhang Yanwei asked blankly: "What happened to the Khitan people? Is there any important person who died?"
Liu Chengyou's eyes were obviously a little more agile, he was beaming with joy, his body relaxed unconsciously, he glanced around, and gave the order very simply: "Pass the order to the whole army to withdraw southward!"
After this order, the generals were even more surprised.
...
Luancheng and Liaoying are all decorated with plain colors.
The sudden death of Yelu Deguang had a huge impact. As soon as he died, the whole military camp became a mess, as if it had lost its direction. People's hearts were uncertain and the morale of the army was in turmoil. The internal undercurrent surged out of the water, and the already depressing military camp became even more unstable.
In a short period of time, the Liao camp became clearly differentiated and divided into three forces. The Khitan nobles, civil and military forces loyal to Yelu Deguang, the Yongkang King Yelv Ruan's faction, and the Han forces headed by Yan King Zhao Yanshou competed for the dominance of the army.
Yelu Deguang's death was too sudden, and suddenly there was no designated person in charge.
Among the three parties, the "Emperor Faction" actually has the largest number of people and the strongest strength, but does not have a leader. Although they all insist on escorting Yelu Deguang's "remains" to Beijing, their hearts are relatively scattered.
Yelu Ruan was well prepared and had won over some noble generals to endorse him and support him in leading the army. In fact, among the entire army, he was the most respected at this time, and his identity and status were in place. However, Yelu Ruan has already shown some bad "signs", which naturally aroused the resentment of the "imperialists".
As for Zhao Yanshou, he basically ran with him, just to protect himself. However, he sacrificed the official title given to him by Yelu Deguang before. He was a little overconfident and wanted to stand on the stage and take charge as the prime minister who stayed in Zhongjing.
The internal disputes were fierce, and the instability at the top naturally affected the lower levels. Soon, the atmosphere in the entire Luan City Liao Camp was completely chaotic.
During a dispute, someone raised a very serious issue, which temporarily suppressed the conflict. That is, how to deal with the late emperor's body. It is impossible to bury it on the spot. It must be sent back to Beijing to give an explanation to the Queen Mother.
However, it was already summer, the weather was hot, and Luancheng was still far away from Shangjing. If it had been transported back without processing, Yelu Deguang would have been rotten long ago.
There is always a solution. With the collective efforts of everyone, Yelu Deguang was pickled with salt and made into "Emperor".
When everything was turbulent in the Liao camp in Luancheng, Liu Chengyou led the Longqi army, played a trick, and retreated southward with great fanfare. After that, they stopped their troops and secretly crossed the Nishui River by other roads, advancing northward along the river at a rapid speed. This road, on the eastern front, is different from the previous route of the Liao army returning north.
During this period of time, Liu Chengyou could send people to conduct overt and covert inspections and get to know the surrounding roads thoroughly.
All the way south, they recruited surrenders, accepted rebels, and eliminated Wu and retained Jing. The total strength of Longqi's army was still less than 8,000. With this small number of soldiers and horses, Liu Chengyou planned to become a "great magician" when he attacked the hundreds of thousands of Liao troops in Luancheng.
