Chinese martial arts! Grandmaster

Chapter 314 Thunderous Wrath! Your Majesty, please grant me death!

After receiving Li Qiong's request, Chen Jie ignored the military order and didn't bother with it.

On the surface, Ximentang is required to obey the orders of Li Qiong, the Grand General of the Ministry of War of the Great Qian Dynasty.

but,

Ximen Hall and the Ministry of War of the Great Qian Dynasty were not subordinate to each other.

not to mention,
Ximen Tang is a proponent of war in this campaign to quell the rebellion!
Chen Jie held secret orders from the Emperor and Grand Marshal Li Zhen, and possessed the Tiger Tally, giving him the power to mobilize troops at any time.

In other words, he didn't need to follow Li Qiong's orders at all.

He thought for a moment, then had someone draft an official document and replied to Li Qiongdao.

After Ximentang captured Xianning Prefecture, he also fought a major battle with Sun Zhong's rebel army.

After continuous fierce battles, Ximentang suffered heavy losses and could no longer continue fighting; they needed to rest and recuperate.

Therefore,
With Ximentang's current fighting strength, it is unable to continue its attack on Tongshan County.

and,

Chen Jie emphasized that Ximentang had already transferred 20,000 troops from Shandong, and they needed to wait for the reinforcements to arrive before making any further plans.

His decision surprised the other elite members of the Simon Hall.

Liu Ergou asked with a puzzled look:

"My lord, the army under the traitor Sun Zhong has been completely decimated by us. They have less than six thousand men left."

"With our current troop strength, we should be able to take Tongshan County easily if we launch a direct attack."

"Why did you suddenly abandon the attack on Tongshan, young master?"

Not only Liu Ergou had this doubt, but the other generals also had the same doubt.

Chen Jie smiled calmly and said:

“You’re right. With our current combat strength, we can indeed take Tongshan County without breaking a sweat.”

"But after taking Tongshan, has anyone thought about what we should do?"

Well--!
For a moment, the surroundings fell silent.

Chen Jie's question stumped everyone around him.

Everyone knows that with Tongshan County's current defensive capabilities, it is simply no match for Ximentang's attack.

Even if Ximentang's army appeared in Tongshan County.

Then,

The remaining rebel forces, who had already retreated to Tongshan County, were about to flee in disarray.

but,

No one had considered what to do after taking Tongshan.
After a while,
Liu Ergou looked up at Chen Jie and said:
"My lord! You mean—after we capture Tongshan County, we'll be facing the 150,000 elite troops of Prince Li Ben of Han!"

Chen Jie nodded and said calmly:
"That's right, once we take Tongshan, we'll be facing the overwhelming army of Prince Li Ben of Han!"

"We only have 10,000 troops now, and the reinforcements will not arrive for another eight days."

"The second batch of shells will arrive in Xianning Prefecture in a few days."

"Our great victory at Tongshankou Fortress was due to our geographical advantage; our logistical supply would not be cut off."

"However, the terrain of Tongshan County is completely different from that of Xianning Prefecture, and the population is also very different."

"Once we take Tongshan, if we disperse our forces, it will be easy for them to be defeated one by one."

"Therefore, taking over Tongshan County will not benefit us at all."

"We should garrison Xianning Prefecture, concentrate all our forces, and defend the city."

"Even if Li Ben, the King of Han, attacks Xianning, we don't need to worry about being defeated by them."

Xu Xiaodao exclaimed in surprise:
"Young master, are we just going to stay in Xianning Prefecture and defend it forever?"

"What if the army of Prince Li Ben of Han doesn't attack Xianning City? If we keep waiting here, how long will it take to successfully quell the rebellion?"

"Before we came to Hanzhong, didn't you say that we had to take the initiative?"

Chen Jie pointed to the map and said with a smile:
"Now that we have arrived in Hanzhong and occupied Xianning!"

"Then we have no intention of leaving!"

"There are two objectives in suppressing the rebels: the first is to eliminate Prince Li Ben of Han, and the second is to seize territory!"

"We sacrificed so much to finally capture Xianning Prefecture, so naturally we won't just hand it over."

Ximentang has arrived in Hanzhong and occupied Xianning. How could he possibly retreat so easily?

It's easy to invite a god, but hard to send him away!
How could Chen Jie easily send troops into the territory of southern Jiangsu?

To know,
The territory of southern Jiangsu is completely different from that of Shandong.

The royal family of the Daqian Dynasty promised to let Ximentang govern southern Jiangsu.

but,

The current situation in southern Jiangsu is chaotic and rife with conflict.

Ximentang wants to station troops in southern Jiangsu, but without a bloody battle and quelling the internal strife, he cannot truly control the entire southern Jiangsu region.

Therefore,
Chen Jie wanted more than just southern Jiangsu; he wanted to take over Hanzhong.

As a result,
Southern Jiangsu, Huainan, Hanzhong, Shandong, Henan, Songjiang Prefecture, and so on, can all be connected into one area.

Both eliminating the rebels and seizing territory.

Ideally, both should be considered.

If he could only choose one, Chen Jie's first choice would definitely be to occupy territory. No one would do something that doesn't bring them any benefits.

Once territory is occupied, troops will definitely be needed to defend it.

otherwise,

The rebels will fight back at all costs.

Ximentang currently only has 10,000 troops, and even if they capture Tongshan County, they won't have many troops to garrison it.

The more territory they occupy, the more places they can station troops to defend.

Therefore,
The safest approach would be to completely eliminate the rebels before establishing a garrison.

At that time, Ximentang will recruit soldiers again, adopting the same approach as Songjiang Prefecture and Shandong.

and,

This is also the safest approach.

After a moment, Chen Jie continued to explain:
"Our purpose in coming to Hanzhong is not only to annihilate Prince Li Ben of Han, but also to secure a foothold there!"

"This will become a very important stronghold for our Ximen Hall."

"For now, let's hold our positions and observe what Prince Li Ben of Han does next before making any further plans!"

After listening, all the soldiers in Ximen Hall nodded.

Just as Chen Jie had finished his meeting with all the elites of Ximentang.

News came from the reconnaissance company of the special operations regiment that General Dong Chuan, under the command of Prince Li Ben of Han, has led an army of 100,000 to Tongshan County!
-

It turns out that Sun Zhong led his remaining troops to retreat to Tongshan County.

He counted the number of people and found that there were only a little over five thousand left.

An army of 80,000 was reduced to such a small number; the word "tragic" is insufficient to describe this defeat.

Although 30,000 of them were newly recruited.

but,

Among them, 50,000 elite troops were the foundation of Sun Zhong's power.

After fleeing all the way to Tongshan County, Sun Zhong had no soldiers left and felt completely unsafe.

He feared that Ximentang would press his advantage and attack Tongshan County directly.

With his few thousand remaining soldiers and the loss of their weapons, he had no power to resist at all.

Let alone Ximentang's elite troops, even if the army of the Great Qian Dynasty were to launch an attack on Tongshan County at this moment, Sun Zhong knew he wouldn't be able to withstand it.

Therefore,
He stayed in Tongshan County for less than half a day before quickly retreating.

He abandoned his post in Tongshan County and retreated directly to Chongyang Prefecture.

then,

He ordered his generals to rest in Chongyang Prefecture, while he himself rode a fast horse, led a few personal guards, and went directly to the military camp where Prince Li Ben of Han was stationed, to apologize with a bundle of thorns on his back.

When Li Ben, the Prince of Han, learned of Sun Zhong's crushing defeat, he was utterly shocked.

He couldn't believe the result!

Do not,
It's fair to say that this outcome is unacceptable.

Over the years, Prince Li Ben of Han has fought many battles with the surrounding vassal kings.

Although he had suffered defeats before, he had never lost as badly as he had this time.

Although he recently cooperated with the Japanese and acquired a large number of weapons.

The Japanese not only gave him 200,000 muskets on credit, but also sold him 5,000 cannons and 500 heavy machine guns. Therefore,
Compared to before, Li Ben, the Prince of Han, was now wealthy and powerful, with a strong and well-equipped army.

He was full of confidence in the 'Chu Kingdom' he had created.

But this defeat completely woke him up.

Sun Zhong commanded an army of 80,000, plus Zhang Datong's 20,000 elite troops.

all of a sudden,

King Li Ben of Han has lost an army of 100,000!

This is the source of his confidence to raise the flag of rebellion and dare to challenge the world!

Losing 100,000 troops at once was practically the death knell for him.

Therefore,
When Li Ben, the King of Han, heard that Sun Zhong had come to the military camp to apologize to him, he was shocked.

His anger burned fiercely, and he wished he could chop Sun Zhong to pieces with a single blow.

However, his advisors and other generals all tried to dissuade him.

Dong Chuan took a deep breath and said:
"Your Majesty, Sun Zhong is a veteran general who fought alongside us to conquer the world. Over the years, he has accumulated numerous military achievements."

"Now is a critical time. The Prince of Ning in the Northwest has led his army south, seemingly wanting to take over the Hanzhong region first, while the Ministry of War of the Great Qian has also begun to continuously increase troops to quell the rebellion."

"At this moment, we must remain calm and not kill Sun Zhong, otherwise the morale of the army will collapse, which will be extremely disadvantageous to us!"

The chief strategist beside him also stepped forward and said:

"Your Majesty, our situation is extremely dire. Killing a general in the army is an ominous sign. I urge Your Majesty to reconsider."

Although King Li Ben of Han raised the banner of rebellion and established the state of Chu.

but,

In the army, all the generals who followed him called him 'Great King'!
Dong Chuan and his chief strategist Sima Ming were known as the right and left arms of Li Ben, the King of Han.

The two of them were also the most valued ministers of Li Ben, the Prince of Han, and even addressed each other as brothers.

at this time,

Hearing that both of them had begun to plead for Sun Zhong.

Prince Li Ben of Han couldn't help but take a deep breath to suppress his anger.

Then,

He turned his gaze to Hoshino Kozo beside him.

Kozo Hoshino was not a general under Li Ben, the Prince of Han, but came from the East.

During this period, he had been working under Prince Li Ben of Han, serving as his advisor.

and,

The large amount of weapons and equipment that Li Ben, the Prince of Han, acquired were all obtained through Hoshino Kozo.

but,

Hoshino Kozo only served as a strategist and did not participate in any management of the army of Prince Li Ben of Han.

Perhaps because of his Japanese identity, and also because he never participated in any military management work.

Therefore,
Although Li Ben, the Prince of Han, invited him to attend any military conference as a sign of respect.

but,

Kozo Hoshino has never spoken out or expressed his opinions.

He was a Japanese man and had always looked down on Li Ben, the Prince of Han, for his management of the army.

to be frank,
If it weren't for Hoshino Kozo's existence, the Han King Li Ben's army wouldn't even be half as strong as it is now.

He infiltrated the Hanzhong region and dealt with Li Ben, the Prince of Han, as both sides had their own needs.

He could provide the rebel army under Li Ben, the Prince of Han, with a large number of Japanese weapons.

but,

If Li Ben, the King of Han, suffers a defeat, his strength will continue to weaken.

Then,

There was little potential for cooperation between the Kwantung Army of the Eastern Expedition and Li Ben, the Prince of Han.

at this time,

When Hoshino Kozo saw that Prince Li Ben of Han was looking at him, he couldn't help but nod and said calmly:

“Your Majesty, even if you intend to execute General Sun Zhong, you should at least let him in and ask him about the specifics.”

"How exactly did we lose this battle?"

"What we need to determine now is exactly how many enemy troops there are? According to intelligence, the one who defeated General Sun Zhong was Ximentang from Shandong."

"We need to know exactly how many cannons Ximentang has equipped and how many soldiers it has."

"Was their commander-in-chief Chen Jie, the Governor-General of Shandong?"

"You should know what our purpose is in coming to Hanzhong as the Kwantung Army."

"It would be better to ask General Sun Zhong about these matters."

"In the coming period, not only you, but also our Kwantung Army, will have to prepare for battle with Simondang."

"As for whether you will kill General Sun Zhong or not, once everything is clarified, it is entirely up to you. I will not interfere in your internal military affairs."

He was the Kwantung Army's liaison and never issued any opinions, but this time was an exception.

to be frank,
Hoshino Kozo was quite surprised when Prince Li Ben of Han invited him to the military conference.

He naturally understood why Prince Li Ben of Han would invite him at this time.

The reason is simple: Li Ben, the Prince of Han, also wanted weapons and equipment.

That's right,

This battle resulted in significant losses for Li Ben, the Prince of Han.

Not only were Sun Zhong's troops almost completely wiped out.

In addition, the Japanese weapons that were assigned to Sun Zhong's troops were all gone.

After listening to Hoshino Kozo's words, Prince Li Ben of Han couldn't help but take a deep breath.

indeed,

Executing Sun Zhong without distinguishing right from wrong would hardly convince the public.

Especially now, when morale is low, killing generals will not help.

So he nodded and said:
"Lord Hoshino Kozo is right. Someone, let Sun Zhong in!"

After a few minutes,
Sun Zhong walked into the main tent of the military camp from outside.

The face of Prince Li Ben of Han was extremely ugly, and his eyes were filled with a sharp killing intent.

Dong Chuan and the other generals beside him stared intently at Sun Zhong.

Some of the generals who had a good relationship with Sun Zhong even showed a hint of sympathy on their faces.

Regardless of the final outcome, Sun Zhong's fate will certainly not be good.

His 80,000-strong army was his lifeline, but now that he has no more resources, how can he possibly stand under the command of Prince Li Ben of Han?
Hoshino Kozo looked up at Sun Zhong for a moment, then narrowed his eyes.

Sun Zhong's feet were wrapped in strips of cloth, and he was seriously injured.

Sparks from the incendiary bomb landed on his legs.

Therefore,
Sun Zhong's leg had been burned, but fortunately, he was highly skilled in martial arts, so it was only a superficial injury that would heal after a period of rest.

this moment,
The atmosphere inside the tent was extremely somber and heavy.

Sun Zhong naturally understood his current predicament.

He stepped forward, enduring the pain of his injury, and knelt before Prince Li Ben of Han, kowtowing and saying:
"Your Majesty, I have suffered a crushing defeat at the Tongshankou Fortress. I beg Your Majesty to grant me death!"

snort!
Prince Li Ben of Han looked up at Sun Zhong and snorted coldly.

The atmosphere grew increasingly heavy.

After a moment, Li Ben said in an icy tone:
"Tell me! What exactly happened?"

"Of the 80,000 troops, only 5,000 remnants returned? Explain every single detail to me!"

"What I want to know is, is it because of your poor command, or is Simon Tang really that terrifying?"

Xi Mentang arrived in Hanzhong to quell the rebellion.

This was no secret to Li Ben, the Prince of Han.

According to intelligence from various sources, Chen Jie, the Governor-General of Shandong, has arrived in Hanzhong.

but,

Both Hoshino Kozo of the Kwantung Army and Li Ben, the Prince of Han, wanted to know whether the leader of the army this time was Chen Jie or one of the other generals of Ximentang.

This is especially important for Kozo Hoshino!
The Kwantung Army landed in southern Fujian and infiltrated the Hanzhong area, their target being Chen Jie.

(End of this chapter)