September is a crisp autumn day with no clouds in the sky. Because of the Han-Liao War, the world is filled with a chilling atmosphere, and the Yanyun area, which is the main battlefield, exudes a palpitating smell. It's like a catastrophe is coming, restless and uneasy.
The Liao Dynasty returned to Huazhou and Wende County, which was the former jurisdiction of Wuzhou. Hundreds of thousands of Liao troops had already gathered here. During the fierce fighting in the Youyan area, the Liao Kingdom did not relax at all. The pace of recruiting troops and going south to fight was very fast.
Even with the large area controlled by the Liao Kingdom and the wide distribution of tribes, by the time the Han Emperor Liu Chengyou arrived in Youzhou, large numbers of Liao troops were gradually gathering southward and stationed in Wende County.
Like the Han army, the Liao Kingdom was also personally conquered by Emperor Yelv Jing. Two monarchs of similar age who controlled the two most powerful empires in East Asia at the same time were about to collide head-on for the first time. This collision was earth-shattering.
The Han Empire mobilized troops in a big way, overwhelming the country's strength. The Liao Dynasty also made a big move. The palace guards, the soldiers of various tribes, the prefecture and county troops from various places, and the levied servant troops, combined, the mobilized The army also exceeds 300,000.
Such a large-scale military force is already comparable to when Yelu Deguang destroyed the Jin Dynasty, and all the elites came out, leaving no remaining strength. In terms of quantity alone, this is already one-tenth of the population of the Liao Kingdom.
In fact, the Liao Kingdom was not well prepared for this war. Even though they had a deep understanding of the relationship between Han and Liao, the Han Dynasty suddenly raised troops in a large scale, which was still a bit unexpected.
After all, after the Battle of Yanmen, both sides took "positive" actions and sent envoys to each other to express condolences in an attempt to eliminate "misunderstandings." As far as the Liao Kingdom is concerned, it also wants to make more war preparations, reform military construction, and improve strategic plans.
However, the Han Dynasty launched an army brazenly, completely disrupting the rhythm of the Liao Kingdom, catching it off guard and putting it into a passive situation. In terms of national organization and mobilization, the Liao Kingdom was not as good as the Han Dynasty, not to mention that the Liao Kingdom had not fought a major war for eleven years.
However, no matter how sudden it was, no matter how difficult it was, for the monarchs and ministers of the Liao Kingdom, facing the Han army's large-scale Northern Expedition, they had no other choice but to actively respond and fight a decisive battle that was not part of their recent plans. .
In Wende County, 150,000 troops from the Liao Kingdom, mainly cavalry, have been stationed here for two days. On the one hand, most people are very tired after a long journey and need to rest. For the Liao Kingdom, which has a huge base, they have already traveled thousands of miles before they even reached the national border when they started their southern expedition. However, the Mobei tribe even more It's thousands of miles south.
On the other hand, certain military training is required. Among the Liao army, in terms of strict military discipline and well-trained training, only the Pishi Army who stayed in the Wei Palace tent could be compared with the Central Plains. Since the army comes from a wide range of sources, it is necessary to make some preparations in terms of declaration of military discipline and military orders and cooperation in combat. After all, this time they are facing the elite Han army.
At the same time, the movements of the Han army need to be ascertained before taking action, and regulations also need to be drawn up on how to fight this battle.
Somewhat coincidentally, Sejong Yelu Ruan also led his army through Wende County at that time, intending to leave Juyongguan in the east, invade Youyan, and invade the Han Dynasty in the south. It was just because of the chaos of Yelvchagou that he lost his life and ended in an anticlimax.
Over at Huoshen Lake, the remnants of the mutiny still remained. Once here, Yelujing still brought his accompanying clan, civil and military officials to pay homage. Then, taking this as a lesson, we strengthened the monitoring and control of the conscripted horses.
In the palace tent, all the accompanying clan members and ministers were present, and the atmosphere was somewhat serious. This was already the fourth military meeting held by Yelujing since he went south.
However, this time, Yelujing first delivered an inspiring speech, and then paid tribute to Gao Mohan, who was killed in Shicheng County, and sealed his coffin, posthumously naming him King Anfeng and naming his descendants Dayin. .
In fact, the impact of Gao Mohan's death on the Liao Kingdom was far more serious than the Han army imagined. In the eyes of the Han army, they only killed a high-ranking Liao official and general, and he was also a Bohai man.
However, this Bohai man has already become a flag of the Liao Kingdom, helping it appease the people of Bohai and rule the land. In the past thirty years, the old land of Bohai was not only the granary and deep land of the Liao Kingdom, but also provided it with a large number of soldiers.
Bohai survivors were active in various armies of the Liao Kingdom, including the imperial army. They played an extremely important role in the expansion of the Liao Kingdom and made outstanding contributions in consolidating border defense and foreign wars.
Gao Mohan is one of the best. Not only is he outstanding in ability and lofty qualifications, he is also loyal to Liao. He himself is a banner that attracts Bohai people to serve the Liao.
Now this flag was accidentally killed at the beginning of the Han-Liao War. This was a serious blow to the Liao Kingdom. Among the Bohai people, there were people like Gao Mohan who were loyal to the Liao Kingdom. Similarly, there were also many careerists who were secretly dissatisfied with its rule and harbored the intention of restoring the country.
Gao Mohan's death had a huge impact. Just as Yelujing said, he was not sad about the thousands of soldiers and horses lost in the battle of Shicheng, but he only regretted the death of veteran Gao Mohan. After understanding the specific battle situation, Yelujing immediately ordered that the two thousand Xiqi generals who abandoned Gao Mohan and left were beheaded and sacrificed for him.
However, for now, the most direct question is placed in front of Yelujing: "King Anfeng unfortunately died in the battle. Who should lead the Liaodong armies to deal with the Lulong and Han armies now!"
Faced with this question, King Yelu Wuzhi of the North Academy said: "Your Majesty, the person in charge of the three states of the Luanping Camp is Gaoxun Jiedu of Liao Xingjun. He is quick-tempered, diligent, knowledgeable in military affairs, and has been responsible for Han affairs for many years. , during this period, the armies on the east route have been integrated to resist the Han army, so why not use it to control the army on the Yuguan Road!"
Gao Xun was also from a famous family in the Central Plains. In the late Jin Dynasty, he was one of the few people who insisted on joining the Liao Kingdom and served for it. In fact, the monarchs of the Liao Kingdom have always attached great importance to the Han people's famous children and talented people, and they have never been stingy about the favor of high-ranking officials and nobles.
Just like in official history, the Han family, which has been throughout the entire history of the rise and fall of Khitan, has now taken root in the Liao Kingdom and is close to the country. The aforementioned Han Kuangmei, the person who formulated and implemented the "encirclement and reinforcements" plan, served as the military envoy in Tanzhou to assist Xiao Siwen in his preparations.
However, upon listening to Yelu Wuzhi's suggestion, a Khitan minister immediately became unhappy and said to Yelujing: "Your Majesty, I heard that King Anfeng was defeated and died because of the betrayal of the Han people in Shicheng, otherwise he would not have been killed. As a result, all the captured Han troops surrendered to the Han army and turned to attack Daliao.
It can be seen from this that the Han people and the Liao are not of the same mind. Now that the two countries are fighting, how can they pay the Han officials with a large army? To prevent unforeseen circumstances, Your Majesty, please make a careful decision and appoint a good general! "
Facts have proved that some Khitan noble ministers are still wary and fearful of Han influence. When Yelujing heard this, he couldn't help but frown. It was not that he was worried about the rebellion of the Han people, but that this kind of suspicion between the Hu and Han people was really not a good sign. You must know that among the large armies mobilized by the Liao Kingdom this time, there were 40,000 to 50,000 rural Ding and puppet troops from all walks of life, which was not a small number.
However, after careful consideration, Yelujing still did not choose to hand over the affairs of the east to Gao Xun. Instead, she looked at Yeluwu and asked: "Are there any other candidates?"
Hearing this, Yelu Wuzhi thought for a while and said, "Yelu Wansi, deputy envoy of the Southern Privy Council, is still in Zhongjing. How about using him to lead the army south?"
After hearing this, Yelujing thought for a while and said, "Okay!"
Yelvwansi was not a very famous figure, but he was from the Khitan clan and had a son, Brother Yelvxiu, who was famous in the "Song-Liao War". Brother Yelu Xiu is still young now, but he is already somewhat famous. He joined the army as a young man and made military exploits in pacifying Shiwei's rebellion a few years ago. He has entered Yelu Jing's field of vision.
"With Yelvwansi as the southeastern envoy and Gao Xun as the deputy envoy, he will lead the Lulong and Liaodong divisions from Yuguan Road to threaten the Han army's flanks!" Yelvjing made a decision.
Then he looked at Yelu Wuzhi and other ministers, took out a letter, raised it, and said: "The Emperor of the Han Dynasty sent someone to send me a letter, saying that he knew that I was good at hunting, and he wanted to join me in hunting. Saibei, how do you think I should reply?"
Upon hearing this, Anping King Yelu Dilie immediately said: "Now that the army is here, why should we be afraid of the Han army? How can we allow them to be rampant? Maybe we can lead the army out of the pass and join them to hunt in Yannan as a reply!"
Yelujing directly ignored the strong-blooded Yelu Dilie, and still sought the advice of Yu Yeluwuzhi. In recent years, although the power of Yelu Wuzhi has been suppressed, when the matter is urgent, the most important thing in every major decision is this king.
In response, Yelu Wuzhi also gave an affirmative answer: "Your Majesty, the Southern Dynasty has launched a large-scale military campaign this time. It is coming with ferocious force and captures both the army and the people of Youyan. In the previous fierce battles, there were many victories, and the momentum is booming. The front of the army is sharp and cannot be confronted head-on.
I think it is better to hold Guancheng firmly for the time being and wait for the enemy to attack, sapping their morale and waiting for a good opportunity to counterattack. The Han army has already divided its forces, and His Majesty has gathered elite troops together. Once the enemy is exposed, he will launch a fatal blow in order to defeat the enemy! "
Yelujing basically agreed with Yelu Wuzhi's suggestion, but he couldn't help but ask: "Will the Han army take the initiative to attack?"
"When the Han army comes, it must be based on attack!" Yelu Wuzhi responded with certainty.
Just a few days after this meeting, Yelujing received news from Juyong Pass. As expected, the Han army marched north in large numbers and divided into two groups to attack Miyun and Juyong Pass.
