In February, spring returns to the earth.
During the fierce battle between Mongolia and the Southern Song Dynasty, the Mongolian army approached the Yangtze River, and Lin'an was frightened, but the three towns in Shandong launched a counterattack.
After Kublai Khan went south, there were no Mongolian troops left in Shandong. Zhao Tai, Wuxian, and Li Fen successively sent troops to take over their original prefectures and counties.
Because there were almost no Mongolian troops stationed in each city, the three towns easily regained their territory and drove the Mongolian troops out of Shandong.
At this time, although the three towns recovered their lost territory, everyone was not happy.
Because although the place was taken back, Mongolia did great damage to Shandong. All three towns were damaged. What they got back was just an empty city and the bones of the people that no one had buried.
Now the three towns have regained their lost territory, but the soldiers of the three towns all know that if Mongolia goes to attack the Southern Song Dynasty now, it will still turn around and deal with itself after it has dealt with the Southern Song Dynasty. The three towns have not really emerged from the crisis.
Under this circumstance, after Zhao Tai took back Pizhou, he immediately wrote to Wuxian and Li Fen, asking them to bring troops to meet.
In the past, Li Fen would not have listened to Zhao Tai's orders. Now that the situation is forcing the three towns to be on the same boat, Li Fen can only lead the army to meet them.
At this time, outside Pizhou City, a hundred thousand troops were gathered in the three towns. The neat military tents were arranged one after another, stretching as far as the eye could see, and the military power was magnificent.
On the canal, there are hundreds of small boats undergoing drills. The erected sails are blown up by the wind. The newly built water camp already looks impressive.
At the end of February, the Yellow River had completely thawed, and with the Yellow River blocking it, the three towns did not have to worry. The Mongolian army near Kaifeng came over and could station themselves on the plains near Pizhou with arrogance.
After Jia Sidao left, Zhao Tai began to counterattack, but after the three towns took over their respective prefectures and counties, they took no further action.
Now Zhao Tai has prepared a batch of grain, grass and baggage, and the soldiers and horses of the three towns have also been assembled. They will break out of camp and attack when Zhao Tai gives the order, but Zhao Tai is still waiting patiently for news from Lin'an.
Shandong is sandwiched between Mongolia and Song Dynasty, and is located at the strategic point between the north and the south. It is a battleground for military strategists. They must embrace one thigh and either surrender to Mongolia or submit to the Song Dynasty, otherwise it will be difficult to survive in the cracks.
This time if the Song Dynasty does not implement the organization for him, Zhao Tai will never send troops easily.
Early in the morning, on the edge of the Yellow River, Zhao Tai stood on a hill and stared at the flowing river.
After the Yellow River captures the Huaihe River, it flows southward into the Huaihe River and then flows into the sea.
At this time, the Pizhou section of the Yellow River was very wide. After thawing, it became a natural barrier to defend against the Mongolian army.
Zhao Tai stood on a high place, pointed to the Yellow River and said: "The land of Shandong is surrounded by rivers and seas. Right now, the sea is in the east, the Yellow River is in the west, and the Huaihe River is in the south. There is only a gap in the north."
Wuxian and Li Fen stood beside Zhao Tai. Li Fen said: "Now that the Yellow River is thawing, the main force of the Mongolian army is in the south. The land in Hebei has been ravaged by us several times. For the time being, there is no need to worry about the Mongolian army coming from the north."
Zhao Tai said in a deep voice: "There is really no need to worry at the moment. However, if such a gap is left, the Mongolian horse army will invade every year, and we will not be able to produce at all."
Wu Xian heard the hidden meaning and couldn't help asking: "Does the king have any strategy?"
Zhao Tai pointed at the Yellow River, "I do have an idea!"
Wuxian and Li Fen looked at Zhao Tai, who mused: "Mongolia invaded many times, and the people of Shandong were massacred. Many places are already hundreds of miles uninhabited. I had an idea before, to let the Yellow River resume its original course and enter the sea from the north. In this way, Shandong will be surrounded by rivers and seas, and Mongolia can only attack after the Yellow River freezes in winter. We will be able to farm in spring and summer, have a good harvest in autumn, and have enough time to produce."
Wu Xian and Li Fen were shocked, "Let the Yellow River change its course!"
Zhao Tai nodded: "That's right! It's just that there were still many people in Jibei Prefecture County at the time. Changing the route would cause disaster to the people, so I didn't mention it to you. Now that the northern border is uninhabited, there is no burden to implement the strategy of changing the route. .”
Li Fen's territory was in the north. Every time Mongolia moved south, he was the first to bear the brunt.
Changing the course of the Yellow River will definitely cause downstream flooding and destroy large areas of land and farmland. However, the northern states and counties are unable to farm anyway and have not much population. If they can really resist the Mongols, the losses will definitely be worthwhile.
After Zhao Tai finished speaking, he looked at Li Fen, "Brother, what do you think?"
If the Yellow River changes its course, the main area affected will be Li Fen's territory.
The old course of the Yellow River has not been used for many years. Once it is changed, it will inevitably cause hundreds of miles of land.
After the Yellow River was diverted, Shandong was unable to build the river channel in a short period of time. Therefore, in the next few years, or even more than ten years, the lower reaches will flood every year.
This not only makes it impossible for people to survive, but flooding will also cause salinization of the land, making it impossible to cultivate large areas in the future.
Li Fen pondered for a while, but nodded, "Now that several states and counties in the north have been slaughtered by the Mongolian army, it doesn't matter even if they become Zeguo!"
Shandong is bounded by the Huaihe River to the south, the Yellow River to the west, and the sea to the east. If the Mongolian army wants to invade, it can only come from Hebei.
Li Fen's territory is in the north, and he has to defend Zhao Tai every time.
If the Yellow River changes its course, although he will flood several states and counties, his territory will become safer after the north becomes Zeguo.
Seeing that Li Fen had no objection, Zhao Tai said in a deep voice: "Okay, let's take some time to discuss this matter carefully!"
At this time, a group of cavalry rushed over. The leading cavalryman turned over and dismounted at the foot of the hill, and then hurriedly ran up to report: "For your information, the king, the military counselor asked the king to return to the commander's house as soon as possible!"
Zhao Tai couldn't help but ask, "Do you know what's going on?"
"The envoy from Lin'an has arrived!" the visitor said.
When Zhao Tai heard this, he smiled and said to Wu Xian and Li Fen: "Brothers, how about following me back to the city and meeting the envoy from Lin'an?"
Wuxian looked happy. When the envoy from Lin'an arrived, he would definitely reward Zhao Tai and ask the three towns to send troops.
This means that the Southern Song Dynasty finally recognized the three towns, and as long as the three towns tied the Southern Song Dynasty, they would have the confidence to face Mongolia in the future.
Wu Xian smiled and said: "Okay! I want to see what reward the Southern Song Dynasty gives to the king!"
Li Fen felt more responsible, but he nodded, "I'll go together."
At that moment, the group descended from the hill, got on their horses, and galloped back to Pizhou City.
The war horses galloped to the commander's house. Wang Bin thought that he had been waiting for a long time, so he immediately greeted him and said, "Your Majesty, there are two things, one good and one bad. Which one will you listen to first?"
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Zhao Tai got off his horse, threw the whip to his subordinates, walked inside, and said with a smile: "Let's talk about the bad things first!"
Wang Bin followed behind, "After Kublai Khan went south, the Song army was unable to withstand it, and Guazhou has been lost!"
Guazhou is an important ferry on the north bank of the Yangtze River. If the Mongolian army occupied Guazhou, they could cross the river and land on the land south of the Yangtze River.
Zhao Tai stopped when he heard this, pondered for a while, frowned and said, "Okay?"
Wang Bin smiled and said: "The Southern Song Dynasty agreed to make the king a county king, and he had the right to know the major military and political affairs in Shandong!"
