Fenghou

Han Shizhong nodded, he understood what Chen Qing meant, don't expand the nature of this fierce battle, lest the two sides turn their faces completely.

"He is indeed much better than me, I can't accept it!"

Soon, Han Shizhong's relief turned into extreme disappointment. At night, dozens of generals returned, but only [-] of the [-] soldiers returned. The rest of the soldiers took the opportunity to leave the war and all went home.

Han Shizhong was angry and annoyed, but at the same time he was helpless.

At this moment, the messenger sent by Xu Xiantu rushed to Daying in Xuzhou, and the envoy of the Son of Heaven also arrived in Chuzhou.

Chapter 85

In the big tent, Han Shizhong finished reading the letter Xu Xiantu wrote to him, but he couldn't say a word for a while. Xu Xiantu clearly told him in the letter that the emperor had already decided to cut down the feudal clan. For his performance in the mutiny, he can also get a high official and generous salary, and enjoy the glory and wealth of the rest of his life, but if he is greedy for military power and stubborn, no one will be able to protect him in the end.

At the end of the letter, Xu Xiantu guaranteed that his subordinates would not be demoted and demoted, and asked him to hand over the army to Liu Qi or Yang Yizhong, and return to Beijing to report on his duties immediately, which was the emperor's intention.

After reading the letter, Han Shizhong couldn't help but let out a long sigh. If the letter could have arrived half a day earlier, he would not have gone to fight the Western Army. He fought the Western Army to prove to the emperor that he has the ability to destroy the Western Army. Now Fortunately, most of his Han family army has been killed, and he has no capital at all. Even if he accepts cutting the feudal clan, he will not get the best results.

Han Shizhong immediately sent someone to invite Liu Kai, and after a short while, Liu Kai hurried over, clasped his fists and saluted, "See the deputy commander!"

Han Shizhong smiled and said: "I'm going to Chuzhou to receive orders, and I may go directly to Lin'an to report on my duties. I still have [-] troops in the camp, [-] troops each in Suzhou and Pizhou, and [-] reserve troops in Chuzhou. There are a total of [-] troops, and I will hand over the [-] troops to you, and then I will order the three armies to obey Liu Dutong's command."

Liu Kai hesitated. Although before he left, the emperor had hinted to him that he would be ready to take over Han Shizhong's army at any time, but did Han Shizhong really hand over power?

Han Shizhong took the command arrow and the military talisman and handed them to him, "I have already lost [-] troops, and I have no capital to bargain with the court. I will return to Beijing to report on my duties, and Liu Dutong need not worry too much."

Liu Kai took the command arrow and the military talisman, "The humble officer must lead the army well!"

Han Shizhong smiled and said, "Let me give Liu Dutong another piece of advice. If Chen Qing's army comes to Xuzhou, they must retreat south immediately. They must not fight against them. It will cause the Western Army and the imperial court to turn against each other, and the consequences will be very serious."

After a pause, Han Shizhong saw a strange expression on Liu Kai's face, and smiled wryly: "I originally wanted to prove to the emperor my role in fighting the Western Army, and I didn't want to be cut off, so I took the risk to challenge the Western Army. The opponent's coach turned out to be Chen Qing, and I didn't expect my army to be defeated by the Western Army in such a short period of time. The cavalry of the Western Army is too strong, no less than the Jurchen cavalry in its heyday. I advise you not to compete with them. In name, it is to consider the overall situation, but in fact it is to let you not humiliate yourself."

Liu Kai nodded silently, "Remember the humble job!"

Han Shizhong immediately summoned the generals of the three armies to give lectures and asked to accept Liu Qi's command.

That night, Han Shizhong packed his luggage and left the camp with his son Han Liang, and rushed to Chuzhou overnight to receive the order.

……

At noon the next day, Chen Qing's [-] troops approached Xuzhou, which was still [-] miles away from Xuzhou.

Liu Kai, Yang Yizhong and Wang Jian discussed countermeasures together.

"The opponent's general is Chen Qing. Han Shizhong has already confirmed it on the battlefield. He is now stationed thirty miles away. He should be a soldier before we evacuate. Let Yang Dutong and Wang Dutong talk about it when we evacuate by ourselves! Are we withdrawing?" Or not to withdraw?"

Although Liu Kai was seeking the opinions of the two, his attitude was inclined to withdraw the troops.

Yang Yizhong pondered for a moment and said: "Before we left, His Majesty repeatedly told us that war with Chen Qing's Western Army is strictly prohibited. We must not disobey the holy will. I support the withdrawal."

The two looked at Wang Jian together. Wang Jian smiled wryly and said, "We can't take Xuzhou City even if we besiege it. What's the point of staying here? It's better to withdraw the troops."

Even Li Qiong's nemesis, Wang Jian, also supported the withdrawal of the troops. What else could be said, the three of them unanimously agreed to withdraw the troops.

An hour later, the tens of thousands of imperial troops withdrew to the southwest and went to Suzhou. Chen Qing then led the army to Xuzhou City.

Li Qiong opened the city gate and led the generals out of the city to welcome Chen Qing.

Li Qiong knelt down and wept, "If His Highness hadn't led the army to come to the rescue, I would have died without a place to die."

The generals behind also knelt down to thank them.

Chen Qing nodded and said, "General Li please stand up, all generals please rise up!"

Everyone got up and followed Chen Qing's army into the city gate. 10,000+ people in the city lined the road to welcome His Royal Highness King Yong and the reinforcements. The atmosphere was very warm and they kept shouting the slogan "Long Live King Yong". The people waved and enjoyed this moment of glory.

After the entering ceremony was over, Chen Qing walked up to the top of the city. This was the first time he had come to Xuzhou City. He looked at the surging Yellow River outside the North City. There were more than a dozen warships of the Western Army cruising on the Yellow River.

"The navy general told us that when we were fighting with Han Shizhong's army, there were [-] Jurchen cavalry on the north bank of the Yellow River preparing to cross the river. Obviously they wanted to join forces with the imperial army to attack me, but I took precautions first and destroyed them with warships. The pontoon bridge prevents them from crossing the Yellow River, and Jin Guo’s plan was [-]% successful, but in the end it fell short.”

Li Qiong was surprised and said, "Jin Guo did this game?"

"Without the instigation of the Kingdom of Jin, the imperial court would not be able to make the decision to make the Northern Expedition. This Northern Expedition was the result of two forces, Qin Hui and the Queen Mother, who were behind the scenes. They are inextricably linked with the Kingdom of Jin."

Speaking of this, Chen Qing said again: "But this time Jin Guo is not without harvest, they have harvested Haizhou."

Li Qiong was taken aback, "Your Highness is not going to take back Haizhou?"

Chen Qing shook his head, "I don't think about attacking Haizhou for the time being. It may not be a bad thing to leave a hole so that the Jin soldiers can threaten the court."

"Then Suzhou and Pizhou..."

Chen Qing laughed, "Don't worry! Have a good talk with the imperial court, give the imperial court a step, and they will withdraw their troops."

"Your Highness is wise!"

Chen Qing said indifferently: "I'm considering resting with the people now. Li Dutong's army will maintain a size of 2 people. I will send other troops to station in Suzhou and Pizhou."

Li Qiong didn't want to be marginalized, so he hurriedly said: "It's better to go to Suzhou and Pizhou as a humble officer, and your Highness will send troops to guard Xuzhou."

"Alright, General Li will be stationed in Fuli County! I'll make Xuzhou the logistics center of the Yellow River Navy."

……

When Han Shizhong arrived in Lin'an, he visited Xu Xiantu that night. He accidentally discovered that Xu Shou, the third child who came out to greet his father every time, didn't see him, and it was the housekeeper who came out to pick him up.

"Where's your yamen? Why don't you see him?"

"My son is out on a study tour, and we won't see him for a long time."

The housekeeper did not hide Han Shizhong, he also thought that his son Xu Shou had gone out to study, Xu Shou's mother had died of illness, this secret was only known to them father and son, Xu Shou changed his name to Yu Shou, and went to Jingzhao to take the imperial examination.

"I see!"

Han Shizhong followed the butler to the guest hall, sat for a while, and Xu Xiantu walked in with his hands behind his back.

Han Shizhong quickly stepped forward to salute, "See Elder Ge!"

Xu Xiantu nodded, "I'm glad you can come back, sit down!"

The two sat down as guest and host, and the maid came in to serve tea. Xu Xiantu took a sip of hot tea and said slowly: "You have received the order from the official!"

Han Shizhong smiled wryly: "The officials criticized the humble official for disregarding the overall situation, started a war with Chen Qing without authorization, and asked the humble official to return to Beijing to report on his work. The humble official is very disturbed!"

Xu Xiantu comforted him and said: "As long as you can obey the imperial decree and come back, the officials will not treat you too harshly. After all, you have saved him back then, and the officials will not forget."

Han Shizhong hesitated, "A great battle broke out between Beizhi and Chen Qing, and unfortunately Beizhi was defeated. I'm afraid the news has already spread back to Lin'an."

Xu Xiantu's expression changed, and he asked anxiously, "When did it happen?"

"It was the morning when Ge Lao sent people to Xuzhou, Beizhi and General Liu Kai led an [-] army against Chen Qing's [-] army, and a big battle broke out in Xiao County."

"And then? How much is the loss?"

"The loss was about 1 people. The others were prisoners of war. Chen Qing released them again. As a result, they all went home and did not return to the barracks."

Xu Xiantu knew that this matter was troublesome. If Qin Hui got the news, he would definitely use this matter to make trouble at the work report meeting.

He sighed and said, "You'd better think of a good reason first, otherwise it will be difficult for me to help you."

Chapter 86 Promotion

The next morning, Emperor Zhao Gou held a debriefing meeting for Han Shizhong, who came to Beijing to report his work, in the side hall of Ziwei Hall. At the beginning, Yue Fei was arrested and placed under house arrest because he failed to pass the debriefing meeting. It’s like a hearing, if you pass it, nothing happens, if you don’t pass it, you will be in trouble.

In addition to the emperor Zhao Gou, there were more than a dozen important officials at the hearing. Due to Han Shizhong's high status, the main questioner was still the right minister Qin Hui.

"Dang!" A crisp sound of cloud board sounded, and the debriefing kicked off.

Qin Hui first brought out an appetizer, and he aggressively asked: "Why didn't Han Dutong report to the court in advance, nor did he notify the commander, and sent troops to the north without authorization on the tenth day of the first lunar month, how does Han Dutong explain?"

Han Shizhong has a way to answer this question, and he has already prepared well. He said in a calm and unhurried way: "I am the deputy commander of the Northern Expedition. When the commander is not in the camp, I can act as the commander-in-chief. I got the news that the general of Pizhou is not here. Suzhou The defenders were extremely lax, so the humble officer seized this opportunity and exercised the power of the commander.

Secondly, the humble official is the Xuanfu envoy of Huaidong, and he has the right to send troops. What's more, the humble official also reported to the imperial court after the fact. "

Han Shizhong answered this question very well. Qin Hui accused him of sending troops without authorization.

"This question passes!"

Zhao Gou spoke up, and the question was passed.

"I'll ask Han Dutong the second question. Why did you disobey the holy will and send troops to intercept the Western Army from crossing the Yellow River? There was a conflict with the Western Army. Please answer Han Dutong!"

Qin Hui's tone became more and more aggressive, and even the atmosphere in the hall became a little tense.

Qin Hui refers to the first conflict with the Western Army. The two sides fought fiercely, and the Western Army lost more than [-] people.

Han Shizhong said calmly: "Our army was originally stationed in Xiao County, and their [-] troops came here, less than three miles away from my army. In terms of military affairs, this is a serious provocation. If my army does not take countermeasures , It is easy to be attacked by the opponent, and the whole army is wiped out. In this fierce battle, the opponent provoked first, and we were actually defending. As a result, the opponent thought we were going to attack, so they launched a bow and arrow attack first."

Xu Xiantu explained from the side: "It's like two strong men with conflicts in the same room. It is inevitable that bumps and collisions will occur. I don't think there is any need to over-interpret it."

Qin Hui looked at the Son of Heaven, and Zhao Gou waved his hand, indicating that the problem was over.

These two questions are just asking for directions. Qin Hui's real trump card is the third question. The third question he originally set was to ask Han Shizhong why he didn't return to Lin'an to report on his duties for four consecutive years, but he received an urgent military report from Zhu Shengfei last night. Han Shizhong actually led an army of [-] to confront Chen Qing's army, and the result was a disastrous defeat. Qin Hui immediately replaced the third question.

Qin Hui bowed to the Son of Heaven and said, "Report to Your Majesty, the third question I want to change, please Your Majesty agree?"

Zhao Gou asked unambiguously, "What question does Qin Xianggong want to change?"

"Your Majesty, I have just received a letter from Zhu Xianggong from Chuzhou. The [-] army led by Han Dutong and the [-] army led by Chen Qing fought in Xiao County. The result was a disastrous defeat and almost the entire army was wiped out."

When these words came out, there was an uproar immediately, Xu Xiantu sighed, and Qin Hui knew about it, Zhao Gou's complexion suddenly became very ugly, he nodded, "Quite!"

Qin Hui couldn't hide his complacency, and asked with a sneer, "May I ask Han Dutong, is what I just said true?"

Han Shizhong said calmly: "It is true!"

Qin Hui finally grasped the handle, and immediately asked: "How many troops have you lost?"

"We had 1 infantry and 5 cavalry, but the opponent had [-] cavalry and [-] infantry. We were quickly defeated, about [-] were killed, and [-] were captured. We took back [-] troops, and even the eldest son of the humble They were also captured, but Chen Qing quickly released all the prisoners, and this is the problem, only dozens of generals and [-] soldiers returned to the camp, and the other nearly [-] soldiers all went home."

Qin Hui continued to ask: "Why did Chen Qing release your eldest son and still have [-] soldiers? Did you reach a compromise with Chen Qing?"

Han Shizhong still calmly said: "When Chen Qing released the eldest son and [-] soldiers, Beizhi was still fleeing in a panic. As for why he released all the prisoners of war, it is probably related to the message he asked Quanzi to bring back afterwards."

"What message?"

"He said that this battle was just a sparring between me and him, there would be no next time, the humble officer thought that he didn't want to make a big deal, and didn't want to turn against the court, so he released all the prisoners of war, and the soldiers went home, That's a humble position that leads troops incompetently, it's a humble position that is incompetent, and has nothing to do with the soldiers."

Zhao Gou breathed a sigh of relief, Chen Qing didn't want to make a big deal, it couldn't be better.

Zhao Gou asked: "When Han Aiqing set off, I repeatedly told him not to conflict with the Western Army. Why couldn't Han Aiqing remember my instructions?"

Han Shizhong got up and bowed to Zhao Gou: "Reporting to Your Majesty, the original idea of ​​the humble officer was just to confront the opponent and prevent the opponent from killing Xuzhou. I thought it was Yang Zaixing's army, but on the battlefield, I found that the opponent's general turned out to be Chen Qing himself. , the blood in my heart boiled up, and I wanted to catch Chen Qing and hand it over to His Majesty, but unfortunately, I was incompetent and didn't seize this opportunity to solve problems for His Majesty, I was incompetent..."

At the end, Han Shizhong's voice choked up, his eyes turned red, and he burst into tears.

Zhao Gou was deeply moved and nodded, "Han Aiqing is worthy of being a minister!"

Both Qin Hui and Xu Xiantu were dumbfounded, this turning point was too great.

……

Zhao Gou then met Han Shizhong in the imperial study, which meant that his debriefing had passed completely, and the debriefing became a bonus item, so the emperor would meet him.

"I brought Aiqing here to ask one thing."

Zhao Gou was hesitant to speak, as if he was still in some kind of meditation. Han Shizhong stood quietly by the side, not disturbing the emperor's meditation.

"You fought fiercely with Chen Qing's main force, how do you feel about his strength?"

Han Shizhong said in a deep voice, "Does Your Majesty want to hear the truth?"

Zhao Gou nodded, "Of course I want to hear the truth."

"His army's combat effectiveness is very strong, very powerful, and the humble army can be regarded as an elite army. The [-] army is against the [-] army. The humble army didn't last for an hour, and it was defeated in half an hour."

"Tell me in detail!"

"Your Majesty, his 5 people are all cavalry. First of all, their horses are far stronger than those of the Song army. Their horses are very tall and majestic. Compared with our horses, they are like a 30-year-old strong man and a ten-year-old man." Two or three-year-old boys, and their cavalry are very strong, and the weapons they use are heavier than ours. Weichen and the other three soldiers are fighting fiercely, and it is a bit difficult, not to mention that they have excellent horse control skills, and they all ride horses. Skilled at archery, personally brave and strong, and well trained, with a tacit understanding, I believe that the current Jurchen is no match for them."

"Is it so powerful?" Zhao Gou asked half-believingly.

"Your Majesty, I am not justifying myself for my failure. I am defeated. It is not difficult to admit it. Even Wanyan Wushu's Tiefutu was defeated by the Western Army. I don't feel ashamed, but I must tell the truth. .”

"Go on!" Zhao Gou felt a little uncomfortable.

"Your Majesty, I think that we should stop training cavalry, and there is no point in spending a lot of money and food. We must give full play to our own advantages and not be led away by the opponent."

Zhao Gou was refreshed, he heard the words pleasing to his ears, and quickly said: "Tell me what you think?"

"The humble official suggested that we concentrate our financial resources to develop the water army. On land, our cavalry is far inferior to the Jin soldiers and the Western army, and our infantry is not as good as the Western army. But in the water, that is not necessarily the case. There are many rivers in the south, and there is a powerful water force." Army, we will be able to contend with the North."

Han Shizhong's words made Zhao Gou fall into deep thought. He is the emperor, and he can't make such an important decision with his head. He needs to think carefully and negotiate with the ministers repeatedly to make a decision.

But there is one thing, Zhao Gou quickly made a decision.