Three Mongolian official ships sailed on the canal.
Ahead is Chuzhou, and after crossing Chuzhou and crossing the Huaihe River, we reach Shandong Province controlled by the Mongols.
Although the Southern Song Dynasty was prosperous, Kuo Duan, a man who grew up on the grasslands, still preferred the north.
The living conditions in the north are not as difficult as those in the grasslands, and they are not as hot and humid as in the south. For them, it is perfect.
At this time, Kuoduan stood at the bow of the ship. The trees and houses on both sides quickly moved back, and the outline of a huge city appeared in front of him.
Ye Luxuan smiled and said: "Your Majesty, we are going to Chuzhou soon! Let's rest in Chuzhou for a few days, and then we should just cross the river and return to the north bank!"
At this time, Kuo Duan was eager to return home. He held on to the guardrail and said, "Go straight back to the north bank. I don't want to stay any longer now. I just want to go back as soon as possible. When I arrive in Jinan, I will immediately mobilize two troops from Shandong and go south." Invade the Song Dynasty, force the Southern Song Dynasty to surrender, and destroy the Song-Jin alliance formed by Zhao Tai!"
When Ye Luxuan heard what he said, he nodded slightly: "The Jin Kingdom suffered heavy losses in the last attack on the Jin Dynasty. Now they must be recruiting troops to restore their strength! If they get assistance from the Southern Song Dynasty, they will soon regain their strength. I agree with the prince's strategy !But~"
Kuo Duan asked: "But what?"
Ye Luxuan said: "However, we don't have many troops on the east and west routes of Shandong. Those Li Quan's old troops may not be reliable and can complete the prince's strategy!"
Mongolia swept across the north, but local control mainly relied on local Han warlords.
Li Quan was originally part of the Red Coat Army that resisted the Jin Kingdom. He jumped repeatedly between the Song, Mongolia, and Jin parties.
Two years ago, Li Quan defected to Mongolia and went south to invade the Song Dynasty. He directed his troops towards Yangzhou, but was defeated by Zhao Fan. The rest of Li Quan's troops, led by Yang Miaozhen, retreated to Shandong and surrendered to Mongolia.
Mongolia now only has a small number of troops stationed in Shandong, and it mainly relies on Li Quan's old troops to maintain its rule.
Kuo Duan was full of confidence, "I have the defense plan sent by Shi Miyuan! As long as we can cross the Huaihe River, the more than 10,000 troops stationed in Jinan will be enough to sweep across Huainan! To fight against the Nannan people, the soldiers and horses of both Shandong groups are more than enough!"
Ye Luxuan thought the same thing. If there was no defense plan for the Song army, it would be really difficult for them to enter the Song Dynasty. But now that the plan is there, as long as the Mongolian army crosses the river, the Southern Song army will not be able to resist it.
At this time, the two of them were talking, and the boat that was sailing suddenly made a "bang" sound and hit the boat in front.
Kuo Duan and the others were unsteady on their feet and almost fell to the ground. The sailors on the deck fell over and cursed everywhere.
Kuo Duan stabilized his body and couldn't help but said angrily: "What's going on?"
Ye Luxuan got up from the ground, straightened his hat, and quickly asked: "How did the boat sail and why did it hit it?"
Before he finished speaking, a boat behind him didn't stop the car, and with another "bang", it rear-ended the boat in front of him.
The Mongolian soldier on the bow of the ship said: "Reporting to your lord, two cargo ships are approaching from the front. Our first ship was unable to avoid them and collided with them."
After hearing the reply, Kuo Duan moved to the bow of the ship and looked forward, but could not see clearly what was ahead.
It's no better on the ship than on land, and you can't get off the ship to check it out.
Kuo Duan stood at the bow of the ship and heard a commotion ahead. He couldn't help but frown, "See how the ship is doing. Is there any damage? Then go and see what's going on ahead!"
At this time, the first ship of the Mongolian mission collided with a cargo ship. The cargo ship seemed to be evading when it was hit by the Mongolian official ship and then pushed across the canal.
When Ye Luxuan came to check, the owner of the cargo ship, who was still very arrogant at first, was frightened when he learned that it was the Mongolian mission that he hit. He apologized repeatedly and expressed his willingness to compensate.
The Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal is the main artery between the north and the south. However, after the fall of the Northern Song Dynasty, the world was divided, and fewer goods were transported from the south to the north. In addition, it was impossible for the north and the south to work together to manage the Grand Canal. Therefore, the canal has been seriously silted up for hundreds of years.
The current Chuzhou section of the Grand Canal seems to be relatively wide, but in fact only the middle can be navigated. Ship collisions are prone to occur, causing canal congestion.
Kuo Duan did not expect that as soon as the ship was approaching Chuzhou, he crossed the Huai River and returned to Mongolian territory, but a ship collision occurred here.
This made Kuo Duan a little irritable. He paced back and forth on the ship's deck. Not long after, Ye Luxuan came back and said, "Your Majesty, the front ship was slightly damaged, but the other party has promised to compensate."
Kuo Duan asked: "Let them pay the money immediately and get out of the way. I must pass through quickly and leave the Song Dynasty!"
Ye Luxuan said, "Your Majesty, the boat was knocked across the river and ran aground on both ends. We need to wait for the Song government to transfer the boat to unload the cargo on the boat and let the boat float before we can move the boat!" "
Kuo Duan asked: "How long will it take?"
Ye Luxuan said: "The other party said that if everything goes well, two days will be enough. If there is a congestion at the rear and the ship cannot get through, I don't know how many days it will take!"
When Kuo Duan heard this, the corners of his mouth twitched and he said with a black face: "Let them hurry up!"
But Ye Luxuan said again: "Your Majesty, even if they move away, we won't be able to cross the river for the time being!"
"Why?" Kuo Duan asked.
"The ship in front is damaged. If we don't repair it, it will be dangerous to cross the river!" Yeluxuan said: "After all, the Huaihe River is wide and the wind and waves are strong. If water enters, it will be difficult!"
Kuo Duan's cheeks twitched after hearing this, "I can't waste my time here. Leave a few people to guard the boat and deal with follow-up matters. You can get off the boat with me and find a boat to cross the river after arriving in Chuzhou!"
At this time, on the edge of the canal, Zhao Tai and a few people were observing the Mongolian fleet from a distance.
Suddenly, Chengde pointed at the Mongolian fleet, "Sir, your plan worked. The Mongols have indeed disembarked!"
Zhao Tai looked up and saw the Mongols landing on the shore in a small boat.
The three Mongolian official ships were three large wheeled ships with relatively huge hulls. The Jin Kingdom had no navy and could not enter the territory of the Southern Song Dynasty, so Zhao Tai thought of a way to ask Kuo Duan to abandon the three large ships.
"If we can take action in the Song Dynasty, we only need fifty elite cavalry to kill them all!" Chengde looked at the Mongolians who came ashore and said with some regret.
Zhao Tai has reached an agreement with Zheng Qingzhi. Now Zheng Qingzhi's position is not stable, so Zhao Tai cannot take action within the Song Dynasty and can only wait for the Mongols to leave the Song Dynasty before launching an attack.
This made it more difficult to ambush Kuo Duan, leaving Zhao Tai to attack on the Huaihe River.
At this time, Zhao Tai watched the Mongolians abandon their boats and go ashore, counted the number of people, and said to a few people: "Go back and let the people on the dock get ready!"
After speaking, Zhao Tai led a few people away and headed towards Chuzhou City.
At this time, Kuo Duan and others got off the boat, and the group gathered on the shore. He left a few people to guard the boat, waiting for the canal to be dredged, and then he took the people and walked towards Chuzhou.
