Late Yuan Dynasty: I am the true emperor

Chapter 447: Can we keep Emperor Yuan? It depends on God's will (ask for monthly votes)

On July 22, Lu Jin left Hezhou by boat and rushed to Zhenjiang, but Tao An and Qin Conglong stayed behind. One of them was from Henan and the other from Jiangxi. This time they would lead a team of civil servants to move with the army. Once they conquered a place, they would immediately establish a regime.

Most county magistrates and prefects were dispatched by the Ministry of Personnel, and a small number of intelligence personnel who had made contributions were transferred to become local government officials. Clerks could be transferred from local intelligence station personnel, so that with the assistance of people who were familiar with local conditions, they could quickly grasp the local situation.

When Lu Jin arrived in Zhenjiang, he found that Zhu Liangzu, Yang Jing and others had already arrived. So, just like in Hezhou, he first rewarded everyone with clothes and commended them for their performance in the Eastern Expedition and the Jiangbei Campaign last year, and then talked about the war in Shandong.

However, this time he did not directly announce the battle plan. Instead, he set out a sand table and asked them what they thought.

"The target range of this Shandong Campaign is to attack the area south of the Yellow River, north to Boxing, Jiyang, Jinan, Dongchang (Liaocheng), Daming Road, Zhangde Road (Anyang), Weihui Road (Xinxiang), and east to the sea, a total of more than 60 cities.

“In terms of military strength, we will mobilize the entire Second Front Army and one army group of the Third Front Army, a total of three army groups, plus two guard divisions and one independent cavalry division, totaling nearly 200,000 people.

"Tell me, how are you going to fight?"

The generals present frowned when they saw the target range drawn by Lu Jin. This time the target range was much larger than that of the last Jiangbei campaign, but the number of troops was also much greater than last time. When fighting in Jiangbei, Zhu Liangzu only had 30,000 soldiers, but this time he had a full 200,000. There was no reason why there would not be enough troops.

So he thought for a while before saying, "Our attack on Shandong this time is actually a small northern expedition. Even if we don't plan to take Dadu directly, the Yuan court will not think so. They will definitely think that we are heading for Dadu, so they will definitely take strict precautions.

"Secondly, which route is best for the northern expedition from Xuzhou to Dadu? Of course, the canal line is the best way to transport food and grass. Therefore, in order to guard against our northern expedition, the Yuan army will definitely set up defenses along the canal line. In other words, the main force of the Shandong Yuan army is on the canal side, leaving other places empty."

Lu Jin nodded and praised immediately, "Your analysis is good, and the intelligence collected by the Intelligence Bureau is indeed like this, so how do you plan to fight?"

"Of course, we should avoid its sharp edge and attack its wings."

Zhu Liangzu's idea was actually similar to that of Mao Gui in history. Both of them wanted to bypass the enemy's heavy troops and break through from the empty flank. The only difference was that Mao Gui chose to cross the sea for amphibious landing, while Zhu Liangzu's idea was to take the land route.

He took the baton and pointed at the sand table, "The target range that Your Highness has set this time is not very long from north to south. From our northernmost Pei County, along the canal to Dongchang Road, it is only about 420 miles. However, the battlefield from east to west is too wide, more than miles, so we must divide our troops into multiple routes and advance simultaneously.

"Your Highness has prepared three armies. I think it would be better to divide them into four groups. I will lead one main force from Pei County and fight hard along the canal to attract the attention of the Yuan army.
"General Liao led his troops from Pei County, and fought westward along the northern bank of the Yellow River (Huai River), taking the route of Shanzhou, Chuqiu, Caozhou (Heze), Puzhou, Nanle, and Daming Road. After taking Daming Road, they divided their troops to attack several cities in Zhangde Road and Weihui Road, and basically took over the area west of the canal.

"Then let Commander Yang lead an army group as the Eastern Route Army. They will start from Ganyu in Haining Prefecture (Lianyungang), and fight northward along Juxian, Rizhao, Zhucheng, Anqiu, all the way to Changyi, cutting off the section of Shandong that extends into the sea."

"That's called a peninsula," Lu Jin reminded immediately.

"Okay, the peninsula, cut vertically from north to south, cut off the Shandong Peninsula. There are not many enemy troops to the east of this line. Sending an army group is enough to wipe them out. Maybe we can even send a message to take the city. After they take Changyi, we can divide our forces to attack Boxing, Yidu and Banyang to the west. As long as they can take these places, they don't have to worry about the rest."

Hearing this, Lu Jin asked, "But didn't you say four routes? Now there are only three routes. Where is your fourth route?"

Zhu Liangzu's eyes lit up and he said, "The fourth route will be cavalry. Zheng Yong's independent cavalry division will be a separate route, and eight small cannons will be added to it. We will first attack Linyi, then Yishui, and then turn northwest from Yishui and attack Laiwu from the flank. We can only attack these three cities, but it can greatly disrupt the situation in Shandong and attract the attention of the Yuan army.

“The cavalry doesn’t need to defend the city. After the battle, they can use Laiwu as their base and attack from all sides. If reinforcements from the Yuan army arrive, use the main cavalry to annihilate them in the field. After the main force follows from both sides, they can advance from Laiwu to Jinan and join forces with my Central Army and Commander Yang’s Eastern Army in Jinan.”

Lu Jin frowned when he heard this. This was not what he had imagined, and it was also somewhat different from the Privy Council's plan.

But Lu Jin did not deny it directly, but asked other generals, "What do you think of this fighting style?"

Yang Jing immediately said, "It's fine for me to lead an army to attack the east, but I only have one question, how do I get the food and grass for my army? And if we have to start from Ganyu, then I have to transfer troops from eastern Zhejiang now, otherwise it will be too late to join the battle. I have to start gathering at the front two months in advance."

Liao Yongzhong also said at this time, "I have the same problem as Commander Yang, how to solve the food problem, especially the cavalry division used by Zheng. The cavalry division is indeed very powerful, but that is based on sufficient food and grass, and the support of the infantry army. The cavalry is powerful.

"Although the cavalry has barely formed a division, it is not safe to let it form a separate route and attack the city alone. It is better to let Zheng Yong follow the main force of the central army to deal with the main force of the Yuan army."

Zhu Liangzu immediately retorted, "But if the cavalry division follows the central army, it will basically be useless. The central army will take the canal and attack cities along the way. At most, I need a cavalry regiment to scout the way ahead and help me kill the fleeing enemies when I attack the city. If the entire division follows me, wouldn't that be a waste?"

Liao Yongzhong immediately said, "Then we will split it into three cavalry regiments, with one cavalry regiment for each of the left, center and right routes. It's just right for the east and west routes you arranged for us. With such a large area, it would be great if there was a cavalry regiment that could help sweep it."

Yang Jing also nodded and praised, "That's right. If I use an army to sweep hundreds of miles, how long will it take me to finish the sweep? The soldiers would be exhausted if they just walk. It's better to use cavalry to persuade people to surrender along the way."

Zhu Liangzu frowned and said, "But isn't the purpose of Your Highness establishing a cavalry division to concentrate the cavalry for use? Isn't it against Your Highness's original intention to split it into several cavalry regiments?"

Upon hearing this, Lu Jin said, "You can't fight by the rules. I set up a cavalry division to concentrate the cavalry for use, but since you can't use them for the time being, and they are short of cavalry on both sides, why can't we split them up and use them separately?"

Yang Jing added, "Besides, my food supply has not been resolved yet. Commander Zhu's central army can use the canal to transport food, but my eastern army has no canal to use."

Lu Jin was not in a hurry, so he let them discuss it, then glanced at the generals, and seeing Mao Gui hesitated to speak, he immediately said, "Mao Gui, what do you think? Tell me too."

"Yes, Your Highness." Mao Gui was called and immediately stepped out and said.

“I also think that if we divide the troops into three groups, it would be better to use the cavalry separately. The main reason is that our east-west battle line is too wide this time. Without cavalry, it will be difficult to even communicate between the groups.

"And just like General Liao said, cavalry is more dependent on food and grass than infantry. If one person has three or four horses, it would be fine, and the cavalry can carry their own food and grass. But we have few horses, only one person and one horse, so we must rely on the food and grass supply of the main army, and we can't fight independently.

"Then there is the issue of food and fodder for the east route. I think we can go by sea."

"Sea transportation? How do you mean?" Lu Jin raised his eyebrows. He finally came to the place that interested him, so he immediately asked.

Mao Gui immediately explained again. "Commander Yang's army group is still in eastern Zhejiang. Now they have to attack northward from Ganyu to join the war, and their combat mission is to cut off the Shandong Peninsula from the north and south.

“And I just found out last month that Your Highness has many ships and a large navy, and can buy horses from Dadu and Liaodong. In this case, why not let the Eastern Route Army board ships in eastern Zhejiang and land in Jiaozhou Bay (Qingdao) by sea?

"Your Highness, please see that there are many rivers extending inland from Jiaozhou Bay, such as the Dagu River. Going upstream from the Dagu River, you can extend it all the way to Laizhou. In this way, you can transport grain from Jiaozhou to Laizhou by water, and you can still cut off the Shandong Peninsula, but this way you cut it further east.

"But if there are ships that continuously transport food to Jiaozhou, we can use Jiaozhou as a base and send troops to attack in all directions. This will also achieve the combat objectives mentioned by Commander Zhu, and the marching distance will be shorter and the transportation of food and grass will be more convenient."

Lu Jin nodded with satisfaction. This was almost the same as Mao Gui's own plan in the original history. The only difference was that this Shandong Campaign, compared with Mao Gui's Longfeng Northern Expedition, involved more troops and a larger target range.

During Mao Gui's assault across the sea, he only captured the area east of Yidu Road, that is, the triangular area where the Shandong Peninsula extends into the sea. He slowly conquered the inland area from Jinan to Daming Road after he occupied Yidu. This time, Lu Jin was going to take over the entire area at once, because he had more soldiers.
So Lu Jin immediately asked the generals, "What do you think of this method?"

Without waiting for Zhu Liangzu to express his opinion, Yang Jing took the lead and said, "I think it's okay. It's better to have a waterway to transport grain than to rely entirely on land transportation. Besides, we have to take a boat to Haining Prefecture anyway, so why not just go forward and land in Jiaozhou, which is indeed more convenient than taking the land route.

"As for Zhucheng, Rizhao, and Juxian, wait until I capture Jiaozhou, and then send a detachment to attack southwards."

Liao Yongzhong also said, "This is a good idea, I agree with it."

Seeing that everyone agreed with Mao Gui's opinion, Zhu Liangzu scratched his head and said, "Wouldn't it be three routes, east, middle and west? If my central army takes the canal, what about Linyi and Feixian?"

Liao Yongzhong said immediately, "What's so difficult about this? Who said that the three armies have to set out at the same time? You can attack Linyi and Feixian before the Shandong campaign officially begins. Once you take these two cities, it won't be too late for us to send troops."

Yang Jing also said, "If Linyi and Feixian belong to the central route, then Yishui will be under the command of my eastern army. It is closer from Jiaozhou anyway."

"." Zhu Liangzu was speechless for a moment. This was similar to his original plan, except that it changed from four routes to three routes, and the duration of the battle would definitely be extended. After all, the three routes were each responsible for a larger area, and it would definitely be slower to end.

So he looked at everyone and asked Lu Jin, "What does your highness mean?"

Lu Jin didn't say anything, but stretched his hand back. Bao Yu immediately handed him a map, which clearly marked the marching routes of the three armies attacking northward at the same time. Lu Jin handed the map to Zhu Liangzu and said.

"This is the battle plan drawn up by the Privy Council. It is similar to what you discussed. Please circulate it for your reference."

Zhu Liangzu's eyes widened when he saw this, and he said speechlessly, "Your Highness has already planned the route of the troops, so why are you asking us?"

Lu Jin rolled his eyes at him and said, "I ask you because I want to hear what you think. If you don't use your brains when fighting a war and just wait for the Privy Council to teach you how to fight, then what do I need you for?
"Besides, the battlefield situation changes rapidly. How could the enemy army be so obedient to fight according to our plan? What if the enemy army fails to do what we want? Then won't you still need to adapt to the situation on the front line?"

Zhu Liangzu nodded helplessly, "Then follow the Privy Council's plan and march north in three directions."

Liao Yongan also took the map and looked at it with Hu Hai and Mao Gui. Mao Gui was surprised to find that the map marked by Lu Jin also had the Eastern Army crossing the sea to attack Jiaozhou, which coincided with his idea. Could it be that great minds think alike?
Yang Jing also took the map and looked at it, then nodded and said, "I agree with the Privy Council's plan. As long as we have enough food and grass, I can conquer all the places east of Yishui!"

Zhu Liangzu then raised another question, "When does Your Highness plan to officially launch the Shandong Campaign? It's already the end of July. I'll have to go back and prepare for a few days. I have to attack Linyi and Feixian first. You have to leave me some time."

Lu Jin immediately said, "Mid-September, or late September. In fact, October is the safest."

Lu Jin pointed to the sky above his head and said, "The typhoon season in the western Pacific is from June to September every year. September is the end of the typhoon season. If there is no strong wind in September, there will be no strong wind in the same year. So it will be much safer to take the sea route after September. Otherwise, if we run into the old incident of the Yuan Dynasty's eastern expedition to Japan, the entire Eastern Route Army will be blown into the sea to feed the fish."

Zhu Liangzu nodded and said, "That's fine. This way we still have more than a month, which is enough for me to conquer Linyi and Feixian.

"Just fight like this, I still have a question."

"What's the problem?" Lu Jin looked at him and asked.

Zhu Liangzu then pointed to Dadu on the sand table and said, "If we fight like this, after this battle we can push the front line directly to Dongchang, which will only be 800 miles away from Dadu. If the cavalry continues to charge, we can reach Dadu in ten days at most.

"I remember Your Highness once said that you wanted to detain the Yuan Emperor inside the pass, but what if he escapes from Dadu just as we reach Dongchang?"

Lu Jin pondered for a moment after hearing this, "We can only think of a solution from a strategic point of view. We can send a letter to hint to the Yuan court that we will only attack Shandong this time and will not directly march north to Dadu.

"Then before the battle begins, we will sell a batch of grain to Dadu, and use the grain to keep them from fleeing to the northern frontier. If they stay in Dadu, they will still have food to eat. If they don't stay in Dadu, they will have nothing and can only go back to the grassland to eat grass.

"Of course, if we still cannot keep them, we can only say that it is God's will. We will wait until we take back Yanyun and then go to the northern border to hunt them down. There is no other way." Lu Jin spread his hands and said.

Upon hearing this, Yang Jing asked, "Can't we let my other army directly land in Liaodong when we fight Shandong this year? Can we keep Emperor Yuan in this way?"

Lu Jin immediately shook his head and said, "You can't keep him. It would be fine if you didn't attack Liaodong. Once you attacked Liaodong, he would be scared away.

“And even if you occupy Liaodong, we won’t have the troops to continue the northern expedition to Dadu. Then they can still run to Shangdu or Shanxi. They can always escape anyway.

"And we have already reached our limit by launching campaigns in Jiangxi, Huguang, Central Plains, and Shandong at the same time. You are not going to leave any reserve troops at all, are you?"

Upon hearing this, Yang Jing said helplessly, "That can only depend on God's will."
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(End of this chapter)