On the Youzhou City side, when they learned that the Yan soldiers, led by Zhao Yanshou, had broken through the Yishui defense line and even crossed the Juma River easily, Yelv Jieli, who was left behind in Nanjing, was furious and cursed them as trash.
"What are Dingzhou and Mozhou doing? So many soldiers and horses can't stop the Yan army?" Yelu Jieli muttered to himself, his face full of evil spirits: "Zhao Yanshou, the traitor, Yan Jun, these rebellious people, really have long been with The Liu family colluded to harm our army. We should have killed them all when they were in Luan City to avoid disaster. The Han people really don’t believe it!"
Fortunately, the meeting hall was full of Khitans and Xi people, and the Han officials were excluded. Otherwise, Yelu Jieli's words would have given another violent stimulus to the already divided Han-Bo conflict.
"The Longqi Army marched northward in large numbers, advancing in two directions. It restrained the armies on the southern front too much, allowing Zhao Yanshou to take advantage of the loophole." A guard general defended the Liao army in the south.
"Longqi Army, Longqi Army again! The Liu family is bullying me and there is no one in Khitan!" Yelu Jie yelled useless nonsense.
"Stay behind and be prepared to deal with the Yan soldiers!" said a general.
"Do you still need to remind me?" Unable to bear the tone of the reminder, Yelu Jieli stared, thought for a while, and said harshly: "Let the defenders of Zhuozhou advance eastward, and the defenders of Tan and Ji also go south. Come, I will personally lead the army to attack and carry out encirclement and suppression. Since Zhao Yanshou dares to go deep alone, come here to seek death and help him!"
As soon as these words were said, several of the guard generals below immediately became anxious. One of them advised: "You can't stay here. Youdu is empty now and there are not many soldiers and horses. If we divide our troops and attack again, Nanjing will be in danger. The Han people in the city are restless and restless due to the previous chaos and resentment. If they don’t have enough force to deter them, trouble will easily occur!"
"Hmph!" Hearing this, Yelu Jieli immediately responded: "How could I not know! How much delay can the army on the southern front cause to the Yan army in a short period of time? What if Zhao Yanshou is allowed to lead the Yan army to Nanjing? , then the Han people in the city will make noise and pose a greater threat to us!"
"Furthermore, there are mostly cavalry in the city now. Since Zhao Yanshou dares to come, if we don't go out of the city to fight with them and defeat them, can we still passively attack and defend the city with him?"
What Yelu Jie said seems to make sense. The general who raised the question was speechless for a moment.
"But what should we do about Nanjing City?"
After thinking about it, Yelu Jieli issued a military order: "Recruit a group of barbarians from the city, give me weapons and armor, and garrison with the remaining soldiers and horses, waiting for the guards of Tan and Ji to go south. The streets in the city are closed and blocked. In every village, especially where Han people are, if there are any who are walking around randomly, kill them first!"
Although there were still doubts, Yelv Jieli made up his mind, and there was no room for opposition from others. He was appointed by Yelu Ruan to stay in Nanjing and was in charge of the military and political affairs of various states and counties in Nanjing Province, with great power.
Soon, Yelu Ruan ordered his troops and horses and headed south, heading straight towards Gu'an. Then, more than an hour after setting off, the Liao general who stayed behind in Youzhou received the news. The Yan army went northward via the waterway, and happened to miss Yelu Jieli, who missed the battle.
...
While the situation in Youzhou was getting worse, Yelu Ruan's side was progressing very smoothly. One hundred thousand troops escorted the late emperor back to the capital. They marched normally along the way, and the Khitan tribe along the way showed no intention of blocking them. Even if you want to block it, you still have to have the courage to face the attack of a hundred thousand troops.
In the process of marching, Yelu Ruan realized what it means to "return to the public's expectations". Still in the Zhongjing Road, there were troops from the Fifth Academy of the Liao Dynasty, Yi Li Jin Yelu An Duan and Xiang Wen Yelu Liu Ge, who sent people to report their surrender and asked their warriors to be the vanguard. Then he led his troops north to Taide Spring and met Yelu Lihu's army.
The Queen Mother Shulu of the Khitan handed over to him the remaining elite troops in Beijing and all the soldiers from the northern and southern chambers. The military strength was not weak. However, Yelu Lihu was really unpopular. During the battle, he was crushed by the vanguard troops of the Fifth Academy and dispersed. As a result, the entire army was defeated and they fled back to Linhuang in embarrassment. He went to seek comfort.
On Yelu Ruan's side, he just felt that the situation was great. It seems that the road back to Beijing is not as difficult as imagined, and even a little too sensitive and cautious. After learning the result of the Battle of Tide Spring, the morale of the army was boosted, and the original anxiety disappeared. The ship of Yelu Ruan was stable, and there was basically no need to worry about the revenge of the Queen Mother Shulu if she failed.
All the way to the northeast, from Youzhou to Shangjing, it is really too far. In a good mood, Yelu Ruan already had the idea of moving the center of gravity of his rule to the south.
However, when news came from Youzhou that Liu Chengyou had sent Zhao Yanshou on the Northern Expedition, Yelu Ruan's good mood suddenly dissipated. Even in midsummer, that face seemed to be covered with a layer of frost.
"This Liu Chengyou is so courageous. He really dares to go north to stroke the tiger's beard! He actually commissioned Zhao Yanshou to go on the Northern Expedition. What a good idea! Does Liu Zhiyuan know?" He praised Liu Chengyou, but there was no kindness in his tone.
Regarding Youyan's situation, Yelu Ruan convened a pre-military meeting. Naturally, the generals held two opinions.
First, by returning to the capital to consolidate their position and name them, headed by Yelu Chage and others, there are still more than 20,000 soldiers in various places in Youzhou. Proper arrangements were made before the fate came, and they can be defended no matter what.
Others, naturally, advocated the immediate deployment of troops for support. These people were led by Yelu Antuan. They believed that the hearts of the people had returned to the new master, and the Empress Dowager Shulu who went to Beijing was no longer a concern. On the contrary, Youyan must not make any mistakes. Otherwise, not only will the expedition south to destroy Jin be a huge defeat, but the results of the previous battles will have to be vomited again.
From Yelu Ruan's point of view, he still favored Youzhou. He didn't get too entangled. After a little consideration, he decided to send troops back for reinforcements. So he sent Yelu Shuogu to lead an army of 10,000 cavalry and gallop back south to annihilate the enemy troops invading the north.
Yelu Ruan's reaction was not too slow. He took action as soon as he learned the news and was not too worried. In his opinion, no matter how bad the situation is, as long as the city of Nanjing is preserved, everything else is secondary. If you give up, you can get it back sooner or later.
However, the situation in Youzhou deteriorated much faster than he imagined, and it was Youzhou that was the first to have problems.
Zhao Yanshou's journey from Gu'an to the north was so smooth that even he could not believe it. He reached the southwest of Youzhou City, abandoned his boat and landed, and came to the Qing and Jin gates without encountering any obstruction.
When he arrived at the city, he realized that the emptiness of Youzhou City was completely beyond his imagination. The idiot in Yelu Jie was even more stupid and self-righteous than he expected. He actually led troops to Gu'an to intercept him.
Overjoyed, Zhao Yanshou immediately spread the news to all the troops. Because they were walking through the waterway, all Yan soldiers basically maintained a certain level of physical strength and combat effectiveness. After a short rest, they ordered the attack. Although there was no leader in Youzhou City, and there was some confusion in the face of the Yan soldiers descending from the sky, they were still guarding the city gates under the leadership of their respective commanders.
However, given the size of Youzhou City, it is impossible to take care of both. Without heavy siege equipment, the first battle was unfavorable and the second battle failed. However, with Zhao Yanshou's familiarity with Youzhou, he quickly figured out its defensive strength. With the size of Youzhou, it was hard for him to take care of all the miscellaneous defenders in the city. He quickly found a breakthrough and entered through the water gate.
The attack into Youzhou was so easy that Zhao Yanshou felt extremely surprised...
