Late Yuan Dynasty: I am the true emperor

Chapter 202: Advance and Escape
On the way from Lujiang to Tongcheng, Feng Guoyong and several civil servants were sitting in a carriage. Zhang Wen followed beside them on horseback. Seeing Feng Guoyong sitting in the carriage and thinking about Lu Jin's letter, Zhang Wen asked.

"Mr. Feng, what did the Marshal say in the letter that made you so fascinated?"

Feng Guoyong came back to his senses and looked at Zhang Wen and said, "The commander-in-chief said that the Yuan army in Anqing Road that could be mobilized for field operations has now been annihilated, leaving only Tongcheng and Huaining.

"But now there is a new situation. In order to stop our army from advancing southward, the General Manager of Anqing Road dispatched a large force from the rear to support us in the north. However, they were annihilated by the Marshal on the way. Now the troops in Wangjiang and Taihu counties behind us are all gone. It is easy for us to capture the two cities.

"But the plan we made before the war was to stop at the Wanshui River, and we had no intention of continuing to attack Wangjiang and Taihu Lake. If we go to fight, we will definitely need more troops. If we don't fight, it will be a pity. The commander is still hesitant, so he asked me for advice."

Zhang Wen nodded to show that he understood, and then asked, "What do you think about this matter, sir?"

"Have you read the map given by the Marshal? The one about Anqing Road?" Feng Guoyong asked back.

"I have read some, but I was stationed in Hezhou before, and when I looked at the map, I paid more attention to various places in Jiangdong, and did not study Anqing Road in depth. Please enlighten me, sir."

So Feng Guoyong took out a map and handed it to Zhang Wen, then explained.

"Anqing Road has a total of six counties, located on a narrow riverside passage, bordering the Yangtze River to the east and the Dabie Mountains to the west. There are two rivers in the territory, Shahe and Wanshui. Among them, Tongcheng, Qianshan, and Huaining are all on the north bank of Wanshui. The original plan was to capture these three cities and then build a defense line to the south based on the Wanshui.

"The two cities of Wangjiang and Taihu are both located south of the Wan River. The locations of these two counties are somewhat extreme. Taihu is only at the foot of the Taihang Mountains, while Wangjiang is close to the river. The distance between the two cities is a full 120 miles. Even if the army marches at a speed of 60 miles a day, it will take two days to walk.

"More importantly, there is a huge lake that stretches hundreds of miles from east to west to the south of these two cities - the Thunder Pond. The Thunder Pond is shaped like a waning moon, with its base in the southeast and its opening facing northwest. There is another city at the opening, which is Susong.

“Susong is only 60 li away from Taihu County, and can be reached in one day by forced march, while Wangjiang County is 120 li away from Taihu Lake, and it takes two days to walk. Once Taihu Lake is attacked by the Yuan army in Susong, Taihu County will inevitably be isolated and helpless.

"This is just one of the tactics. In addition, the enemy can also send a navy to attack Wangjiang County through Lei Chi, making a feint to the east and attacking in the west, luring the tiger away from the mountain, and making us lose one while focusing on the other. If the enemy attacks in this way, one of Taihu and Wangjiang counties will be lost, and the loss of the remaining one is only a matter of time."

Zhang Wen looked at the map in his hand and nodded repeatedly as he listened to Feng Guoyong's analysis. He had also led troops in battles, so he could naturally understand this.

Before Feng Guoyong finished speaking, Zhang Wen agreed.

"No, it's determined by the terrain. The distance between Taihu and Wangjiang is too far, so they can't support each other. In addition, there are no natural mountains, passes, or rivers to the south of the line connecting the two cities. If you want to defend here, you will definitely be very passive, unless..."

Before Zhang Wen could finish, Feng Guoyong continued, "Unless we can continue to attack southward and include Susong in our territory, we can rely on the Leishui River, the Great Thunder Pond, and this series of water systems to form a natural defense line to keep the enemy out of the defense line.

"And we must arrange a navy to be stationed in Lei Chi for a long time to be able to hold it. Otherwise, we will have to station heavy troops in the border areas, but this will consume too much manpower."

Zhang Wen nodded repeatedly after listening to this, and it was obvious that he agreed with Feng Guoyong's statement.

To put it simply, if you want to garrison Taihu and Wangjiang for a long time, you must capture Susong and dispatch a navy to garrison there. If you don't want to attack Susong, or don't have a navy, it's best not to plan for long-term occupation.

Zhang Wen had not had a detailed discussion with Feng Guoyong before. It was only during this discussion on strategic issues that he first learned about Feng Guoyong's military talent and immediately praised him.

"Sir, your analysis is insightful and makes people suddenly enlightened. No wonder the Marshal relies on you as a pillar. I am afraid that you are the only one who can help the Marshal with this kind of military strategy."

Feng Guoyong heard this and quickly said modestly, "No, no, Commander Zhang, you are too kind. I am just helping the Marshal to coordinate general affairs in the rear, but the other commanders are leading troops to attack and defend the borders at the front. How can I compare with you commanders?"

Are you kidding? Although Feng Guoyong is the secretary of the Secretariat of the Marshal's Mansion and the head of the Military and Political Department of the Martial Academy, Zhang Wen's identity should not be underestimated. If Lu Jin takes over the world in the future, he will be the Queen's elder brother and he also holds a military position. His future must be limitless. How dare Feng Guoyong be arrogant in front of Zhang Wen?

Zhang Wen didn't say anything polite and avoided the topic, but asked again, "Sir, do you advocate taking Susong, or giving up Taihu and Wangjiang counties?"

When Feng Guoyong heard this, he immediately became conflicted. There were a total of six counties in Anqing Road. According to the original plan, he only needed to take half of them, and then establish a defense line for a long time, and then make full preparations to cross the river and attack Jiangsu and Zhejiang.

When Liao Yongan just handed over the battle plan, Feng Guoyong had discussed this matter specifically with Lu Jin. He was afraid that the battle line in the north of the Yangtze River would be too long, and there would not be enough troops when crossing the river in the future. You must know that the south of the Yangtze River is definitely not easy to fight. The Yuan army there has too many troops. If there are not enough troops crossing the river, it will definitely not work.

But what if we take over the entire Anqing Road?

The temptation is also huge!

Without talking about anything else, I will just tell you one thing. If we take over the entire Anqing Road and arrange a navy, we can control the entire Dalichi. The southernmost end of Dalichi is only fifty miles away from Jiujiang Prefecture, the northern gate of the entire Jiangxi Province, which is just a day's journey. This means that the entire Jiangxi Province is almost open to them.

The Poyang Lake, one of the three lakes that Lu Jin talked about every day, was right in front of them. There were 10 to 20 million people there, and they could at least organize an army of 200,000!
In troubled times, the struggle for hegemony is about food and manpower. If we take over the Poyang Lake Plain and then the Taihu Plain in the south of the Yangtze River, we can train an army of hundreds of thousands to attack from all directions and sweep across the world!

Faced with such a huge temptation, not only Lu Jin couldn't help but occupy those two counties, Feng Guoyong also felt that he couldn't help himself.

The most crucial thing is the manpower. Before, he was worried that there would not be enough troops to cross the river in the future, but now Lu Jin has captured tens of thousands of Yuan troops at once, plus the troops from Tongcheng and Huaining, if they can all be captured, it is estimated that the army can be expanded by about 20,000 troops, which can be organized into at least four regiments. In this way, the manpower will not be too scarce.

After thinking for a long time, Feng Guoyong said, "In my opinion, it doesn't matter whether we occupy it or not. If we occupy it now, it is indeed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. But if we take Susong as well, the previously established Wanshui defense line will be useless. We must establish a new defense line. How many troops will be stationed on the new defense line? I'm afraid I have to discuss this with the Marshal."

Zhang Wen nodded and then said, "If you want to have a face-to-face meeting with the Marshal, then Mr. Feng would have to go faster. The Marshal has ordered my Sixth Regiment to be stationed in Tongcheng temporarily. I'm afraid I can't continue to move south. Commander Liao has probably already moved south in advance. I will send another battalion to see you off when the time comes." "Thank you very much in that case." Feng Guoyong bowed and took the map from Zhang Wen. The group then continued on their journey.

On the other side, Zhang Liang and Qin Zhao led two combat battalions on a rapid march, and finally arrived in Tongcheng in one day.

After seeing them, Liao Yongan learned that Zhang Wen was right behind them, so he felt relieved and immediately arranged the follow-up matters. He asked Zhang Liang to lead a battalion into the city, and Qin Zhao to lead a battalion outside the city to guard the 4,000 captured soldiers.

Liao Yongan also left the injured Yin Congdao and those wounded soldiers in Tongcheng to recuperate, and then took Zhen Yanlong and his son, Shao Yongjian and his son, Ge Yanling, a surrendered crossbow captain Mao Wei, and his 100 archers, and then set out to catch up with Zhao Yong of the 11th Regiment.

Tongcheng is only sixty miles away from the Shahe battlefield where Lu Jin is located. Zhao Yong set out one day earlier than Liao Yongan and had already arrived at Lu Jin's camp.

Seeing tens of thousands of prisoners here, even Zhao Yong, who had seen big scenes, was still a little shocked. It was hard for him to imagine how Lu Jin fought this battle.

"Marshal, our 11th Regiment, with a total of 4500 men, has been brought here. Please give us your instructions, Marshal."

Lu Jin was very happy to see Zhao Yong. He looked at his troops and asked immediately, "Have you taken Tongcheng?"

"We took it. When we were attacking the city a few days ago, Brother Liao asked my 11th Regiment to conduct a feint attack while his 3rd Regiment launched the main attack. As a result, there was a centurion of crossbowmen transferred from Anqing among the Tongcheng defenders. He had more than a hundred archers under his command. They shot arrows from a high position. We attacked the city from above, and the chariots were useless, so we suffered some casualties.

"Brother Liao's Third Regiment suffered several hundred casualties, including a deputy company commander and three platoon leaders, all of whom died. Yin Congdao also received multiple injuries and was stabbed down from the top of the city wall by the enemy's spear. He was badly injured and is still lying down. It is estimated that he will not be able to get up for more than a month."

"Oh? So the Tongcheng defenders are quite capable of fighting?" Lu Jin asked with a raised eyebrow.

Zhao Yong nodded and continued, "Tongcheng has 5,000 defenders, including Shao Yongjian and Ge Yanling who came from Anqing. They have 2,000 armored soldiers under their command, which is considered elite. Yin Congdao climbed the top of the city wall twice, but was knocked down by the enemy's armored soldiers' counterattack.

"Zhen Yanlong from Tongcheng is just average. The soldiers of his father and his two sons were all recruited in Tongcheng. They don't have many sets of armor, so we haven't seen them do much to defend the city these days. They mostly do odd jobs in the back.

"However, the elite troops of Shao Yongjian and Ge Yanling are not much stronger than ours. During the three days of siege, their soldiers suffered heavy casualties. We killed about 700 to 800 of them. Overall, our casualties are still less than theirs. We almost achieved a one-for-two exchange.

"I estimate that even if the Marshal does not send the Tartar's head and the banner, in two days at most, when those armored soldiers have been almost exhausted by us, Tongcheng will be captured."

Zhao Yong briefed Lu Jin about the situation of the siege, and was also speaking for Liao Yongan, fearing that Lu Jin would blame them for being too slow. But in fact, Lu Jin did not think so. In history, there were many fortified cities that held out for months or even years, and sieges were inherently difficult.

Lu Jin nodded to show his understanding, and then asked, "What happened next? What did you do after my letter went through?"

Zhao Yong continued, "After the Marshal sent the Tartar's head and banner, Brother Liao wrote another letter to the city to ask for surrender. They sent Zhen Yanlong to negotiate and wanted an official position, but they couldn't disband their troops, and they couldn't settle scores later. Brother Liao followed the Marshal's previous methods and agreed to their requests before letting them open the city and surrender."

Zhao Yong added, "But Brother Liao didn't agree to everything they said. He said that their troops could remain in place, but they had to accept our reorganization. The highest official rank they could be given was a thousand households, and they had to be appointed by the Marshal himself. They all agreed.

"Then Brother Liao asked me to come first. The Marshal was in a hurry to use troops. He was watching the prisoners in Tongcheng and waiting for Zhang Wen's Sixth Regiment to take over Tongcheng. Once Zhang Wen came, he should be able to leave."

Lu Jin nodded again and asked, "So you don't know where Zhang Wen and Feng Guoyong are now?"

"I don't know. Brother Liao asked me to come here first, so I rushed here without stopping. The Marshal only has three combat battalions here, and he has to take care of tens of thousands of prisoners. Do you want my 11th Regiment to help?"

"this one"

Lu Jin originally wanted to let the 11th Regiment take over Qianshan County and Taihu County, with one regiment divided into two halves, with two battalions stationed in one city. But now, looking at the three generals Lu Ding, Miao Youzhen, and Wu Guoxing behind Zhao Yong, he suddenly felt that the 11th Regiment was much stronger than Guo Zixing.

In this battle, Lu Jin was extremely disappointed with Guo Zixing. This man's military talent was really mediocre. It would be better for him to leave the 11th Regiment behind to guard the city. The th Regiment was a fresh force and would be more suitable to follow him to attack Huaining.

So Lu Jin immediately called Guo Zixing and several of his generals over and gave them the order.

"Old Guo, Cao Liangchen has already led a battalion to deceive Qianshan City and has now succeeded, but he has too few soldiers. You should take your battalion there immediately, and you and Liangchen will garrison Qianshan together.

"Desheng, you are the deputy commander of the 8th Regiment. You take Tianjue with you, also two battalions. Go attack Taihu now. There is no soldier there right now. Pick some surrendered soldiers from Taihu from the captives and ask them to help lead the way to the false city. Quickly capture Taihu. After the war, after these surrendered soldiers have been reorganized, I will adjust your garrison."

The two were very surprised to hear this. Guo Zixing had also noticed that Lu Jin's attitude towards him had changed in the past two days. It seemed that he was blaming him for being slow in commanding the battle, but now he suddenly adjusted the deployment and was about to attack Huaining, but he would not let his Eighth Regiment go. Did he really have something against him?
Guo Zixing did not dare to speak out, so he could only ask, "The siege of Anqing is imminent, and the Marshal does not want us to go with the Eighth Regiment?"

Lu Jin said with a smile, "Cao Liangchen has already gone to Qianshan. After Qianshan is taken, we will have to send troops to garrison there. If I send the 11th Regiment now, I will have to bring Cao Liangchen back, and it will be a hassle to go back and forth. Since Qianshan is already under the control of your 8th Regiment, we don't need to bother two people. You might as well go with us.

"The military is tight right now. One regiment of yours has to defend two cities. I have no other options. Lao Guo, please bear with me for now."

Lu Jin spoke so politely and gave very convincing reasons, Guo Zixing had no choice but to agree.

(End of this chapter)