In the eleventh year of Qianyou's reign, it was winter, the first day of October,
Early winter has arrived, and the desolation between heaven and earth is getting worse. The north wind crossing Yanshan Mountain has begun to show its sharpness, blowing the grass and dead trees in the wild. Outside the south entrance, one hundred thousand soldiers of the Han Dynasty who had completed their rest and equipment were arrayed in array, standing solemnly in front of the cemetery.
One hundred thousand Han troops were divided into ten military formations. They were neatly organized and majestic, creating a solemn and grand scene. In addition to the army and generals, many local officials in Youyan, as well as the accompanying imperial concubines, princes and ministers, are all in formal attire, all with solemn expressions.
A high platform for worship was raised from the ground within three days. Along the steps, the emperor's ceremonial guards were deployed. Under the gaze of everyone, Emperor Liu Chengyou took the stage in full imperial robes. This was a memorial ceremony for the fallen soldiers at Nankou. The scale was very large and it was also a political show. However, after watching the battle, the morale of the soldiers was somewhat dampened. Liu Chengyou came up with a way to unite the morale of the soldiers and inspire them. morale.
The person conducting the ceremony was Chenliu Wang An Shenqi, wearing the royal armor gifted by the emperor, with a solemn face, holding a sacrificial text in both hands, and read it aloud. Liu Chengyou personally held the incense and solemnly performed the ceremony.
Under the altar, a group of people bowed their heads solemnly to show respect. At the end of the ceremony, Liu Chengyou turned around and looked around at the hundreds of thousands of people under the stage. Such a mighty and majestic warrior was only a small part of the mighty strength of the big man. He let himself be driven by him, and his heart was a little ups and downs in thinking. How many heroes and heroes can remain sober without getting lost in this kind of status and glory? Liu Chengyou feels that he is already calm enough.
After calming down and clearing his throat silently, Liu Chengyou spoke and delivered a speech. Liu Chengyou's speech was not long and had three main points. The first is to commemorate the soldiers who fought bloody battles and fought bravely and sacrificed their lives since the Northern Expedition; the second is to reaffirm the great cause of the Northern Expedition; the third is to encourage the soldiers to continue their efforts, make contributions to the country and meritorious deeds for themselves.
Of course, the manuscript was prepared, and while Liu Chengyou was speaking, the Xuan Wei Lang in the army quickly and accurately conveyed what the emperor said.
All this seems very formal, but in many cases, formal things are very effective in inspiring people's hearts.
Finally, Liu Chengyou raised his arms and shouted, all the inspiring words condensed into one sentence: "The Han army is mighty!"
"The Han army is mighty!"
Deafening shouts erupted from under the altar, and everyone shouted at the top of their lungs. Standing in front of the formation, Liu Fang looked very excited, raising his hand high and waving it vigorously.
The mighty voice lasted for a long time, and under the guidance of thoughtful people, it turned into calls of "Long live" and "Ten thousand victories". Liu Chengyou's tense face revealed a faint smile unconsciously.
After the ceremony, Liu Chengyou made another arrangement. After the Northern Expedition ended, a town was established at the south entrance, where residents were relocated, the population was enriched, the cemetery was served, and the souls of heroes were taken care of to show respect for the meritorious soldiers.
After Liu Chengyou's series of kindness and courtesy, the morale of the Han army was greatly boosted, and the strength of the camp was also rapidly recovering.
In comparison, across a mountain, the situation of the Liao army was much more miserable. It had not improved, but showed signs of deteriorating. The military strength was greatly damaged, morale was low, and people's hearts were in turmoil.
As for the losses of the Liao army, the Han army is just an estimate. The specific details will be known by themselves. Of the 200,000 troops that went out, less than 120,000 actually returned to the back of the Pass, and the entire camp was filled with wounded soldiers. Due to the serious lack of medicine, many injured Liao soldiers died due to lack of timely treatment.
Of course, there are only a few people who die from serious injuries, and those who are really seriously injured cannot come back at all. Even so, thousands of soldiers still suffered from worsening injuries and lost their lives. During this period, the Liao army arranged several concentrated cremations, and the morale of the army was hit hard again.
The losses of the Liao army were all-round, not to mention the casualties of the subordinate ethnic groups, servants and horses. The tribal army of the Liao army suffered heavy casualties. The remaining elite and iron kite troops were all wiped out. The left and right Pishi troops who defended the imperial power also suffered casualties. Wan, the blow to Emperor Liao was not small.
After returning to the right side of the mountain, the Liao army did not stay long at Juyong Pass. There was no room for more than 100,000 Liao troops there. Except for leaving some of Yelujing's newly assembled troops to garrison Guancheng, the rest of the Liao army rested in Huailai County. , licking the wound. The more you lick the wound, the more painful it becomes, the kind that hurts your heart.
In fact, Yelujing concentrated all the remaining forces of the Shanyou armies in Huai Lai this time. There are still 130,000 people. However, the defeated army cannot be relied on, even the powerful soldiers of the Liao army.
After responding to the defeated army, Yelvjing also took a series of measures to appease the morale of the soldiers, such as giving generous rewards of wine and meat, arranging people to treat the wounded soldiers with all their strength, and personally inspected and comforted the soldiers without any intention of blaming them. Although it played a certain role in maintaining stability, The serious decline in morale was inevitable. The Liao soldiers on the southern expedition were increasingly timid about fighting and yearning to return home.
After such a bitter battle at Nankou, for the Liao Kingdom, not to mention the overall situation such as strategy, it had already suffered a serious crisis. For a long time to come, the Liao army would no longer be able to withstand a major war.
If it was just a matter of morale, it would not be that serious. The key is that after this battle, the Liao Emperor's prestige plummeted, which led to a lot of criticism within him.
Many of the nobles and ministers accompanying him began to raise objections to the decision to march south. Among them, the one who annoyed Yelujing the most was that King Yelu Dilie of Anping was involved in it after all.
A force against Yelujing began to accumulate again. Although it was not enough to shake his throne, there were signs of instability after all. A defeat, a major setback, exposed many problems.
As for the situation that affected her throne, Yelujing seemed very sensitive. She once had the intention to take action, but she resisted and did not take action. The enemy was still in front of her, so it was difficult for her to make another setback and act rashly. However, Yelujing still strengthened his control and restraint on the army.
Fortunately, the military strength controlled by Emperor Liao was still strong enough to suppress it. During this period, what he did most was to appease the tribal generals, and he spent a lot of energy.
After that, with the news of the Han Emperor's memorial ceremony at Nankou, Yelujing really freed up his energy and began to think about how to face the current situation and how to deal with the still aggressive Han army.
In these days, another strong Han stronghold was erected at the south entrance, staring at Juyong Pass. Li Chongjin, who occupied Jinshan Mountain, did not stop and sent his Qingqi to attack Huailai. Although the number was small, they were very rampant and shocked the Liao army.
Regarding the outcome of the battle at Nankou, Yelvjing was both angry and regretful. He was angry at Tanzhou's improper defense and the ineffective battle at Nankou, and regretted that he should not have attacked rashly, which made the situation of the Liao army even more embarrassing.
Of course, Yelujing has not fully displayed these emotions, and it is not yet time to hold him accountable. But the noble ministers of the Liao Kingdom, many of whom were smart, could feel it to some extent. The first person to plead guilty to Yelujing was Yeluwuzhao, but after this battle, Yelujing relied on him even more. Instead of harshly criticizing him, he comforted him with gentle words.
As for Xiao Siwen, he was directly taken down and stripped of all official positions, with the intention of settling the old and new issues together. Xiao Husi, who was still accompanying the driver, interceded and was spared.
As for Han Kuangmei, because he was seriously injured in the battle, he was exempted from the blame. Yelujing also greatly encouraged him for his loyalty and bravery, and promoted him to a noble title. The more critical the moment, the more important it is to set some examples.
On the contrary, it caused two major defeats in Tanzhou and Nankou. Among the Liao generals, Han Kuangmei, a Han minister, became the only one to receive praise.
In Huailai City, Yelujing once again convened several close ministers to hold an imperial meeting. He looked seriously and without any unnecessary nonsense, he said directly: "Our army was seriously injured in the battles of Tanzhou and Nankou. So far, Daliao has reached a very critical point. The situation was extremely unfavorable for me. During this period of time, I thought about it repeatedly, made in-depth summaries, and felt a lot.
Although the losses in the Battle of Nankou were heavy, it was not because of the incompetence of the Liao soldiers. Only in the Battle of Tanzhou, tens of thousands of defenders were defeated in one battle. The reason for this has to make us think deeply.
Facts have proved that taking the initiative to attack was not an improper decision. It was not advisable to stick to the city and defend it, but to expose one's shortcomings and let the Han army do whatever they wanted! "
After hearing what Yelujing said, Xiao Husi took the initiative and said, "Your Majesty, Tanzhou's defeat is indeed worthy of our warning. I have learned in detail that there are three reasons for its defeat.
First, the Han army had sharp weapons and a large number of weapons for attacking fortresses, but our army lacked the means to deal with it, which allowed them to take advantage of it;
Second, our army was poorly prepared, but the Han army occupied the city and carried out large-scale construction projects without sparing the consumption of ordnance. This was the first time since the two countries went to war;
Third, the Han army had strong morale and was well-trained. They attacked with all their might, regardless of casualties.
Therefore, I believe that the loss of Tanzhou was caused by many reasons. Based on this lesson, Daliao only needs to make all preparations in advance, and the Han army will not be able to easily break through our city again! "
What Xiao Husi said was purely because he did not want to heighten the ambition of the Han army. His words were reasonable and true, but they lacked some feasibility.
Yelujing sighed and looked around: "After these two battles, our army has lost hundreds of thousands of troops. This is an unbearable loss for the Liao Dynasty. Today, the main force of the Han army, 200,000 strong, is still stationed in Outside the south entrance, the Jinshan Han army is also watching, and the soldiers and horses from Hedong are also out of the fortress to attack Yunshuo. In this critical situation, what adjustments and choices we should make is the most important thing at the moment. What do you have to say?"
After Emperor Liao finished speaking, the ministers looked at each other several times with worried expressions on their faces, but for a while no one responded. Finally, the hostage in Yelu House looked at Yelu Jing solemnly and said: "Your Majesty, I must be honest, after this battle, with the strength in our hands, it will be impossible to compete with the Han army in Yandi!"
