Destroy Jin and conquer Song, and carry the Northern Expedition through to the end

Chapter 320: Reunion with Old Friends

After marching only ten miles north, the Jin army gradually gathered.

Because the Jin army was composed of cavalry, even if they dismounted and fought on foot, their comrades would gather their horses and watch the battle from afar.

When you are at a disadvantage, even if you cannot win, you can still escape.

Before dark, the two generals roughly counted the troops and found that there were only about 1,500 people left. They couldn't help but feel a little depressed.

But only some.

After all, these were just minor setbacks, and everyone was mentally prepared for this outcome. It was already good enough to be able to retreat intact after taking such an adventure alone. What else could they want?

The failure of a tentative attack is acceptable. The only depressing thing is that the State of Song will definitely show off this battle as a great victory. There are many literati and poets in the State of Song, and they may become villains in poems and essays handed down from generation to generation. It is really melancholy.

Less than half an hour after nightfall, the Jin army returned to a small town they had previously occupied. After Gao Jingshan inspected the army's camp, before he could even find two eggs to eat with a bowl of noodles, he asked the leader of his personal guards to call someone over.

Soon, this relative who had come to him two months ago appeared in front of Gao Jingshan.

Gao Jingshan looked him up and down for a few times, and seeing that he had a calm expression, he nodded and said, "Erlang, do you know why this old man values you so highly? You've only been here for a few months, but I've already kept you by my side and carefully trained you?"

The person who spoke out to remind Gao Jingshan today and protected him behind his back was naturally Gao Anren, the biological son of Gao Wenfu, the former governor of Haizhou.

He just bowed his hands when he heard this: "Of course it's because the steward loves his nephews."

Gao Jingshan shook his head and smiled, "I have many sons and nephews, and the men of Bohai all like to establish connections with me. In order to gain a foothold in the Great Jin, I accept all who come. But how many of them do I value?"

Gao Anren remained silent.

Gao Jingshan saw this and did not continue to keep the secret: "I also know something about the situation in Shandong. To be honest with you, if you, Erlang, had come to me directly after the fall of Haizhou, I would not have turned you away, but I would not have treated you differently either.

But since you went to Yizhou and continued to fight the bandits, and even after another defeat, you helped Pushandama and Liu Fen escape, and still didn't lose your ambition, and when you came to me, you still wanted to serve the country, how could I not value a talent like you?

To be honest, there are many young people who show great potential, but they often lose their will and courage after a failure. It is very rare to find someone as indomitable as you.

Gao Anren forced a wry smile and after a long silence, he finally spoke, "Boss, I also want to be a dandy, fighting like an eagle and a dog under the protection of my father and brothers. But the world is like this, and things are pushing us. If we don't want to go with the flow and become a walking corpse, we can only stick to ourselves and fight hard."

Human growth begins with the realization that one is not the protagonist of the world.

Those who can calmly accept that eight out of ten things in the world are not as they wish, and who are brave enough to face these eight or nine points of pain and actively strive for the one or two points of opportunity, are the beginning of true maturity.

From this perspective, Gao Anren is completely different from the dandy young man who panicked by the reed marsh that day.

Gao Jingshan stroked his beard and said, "You are so young, yet you can see the world so clearly. It is truly not easy. From now on, I will share the position of a military advisor with you, guarding my side and observing my military operations and administration. Are you willing?"

Gao Anren knew that Gao Jingshan was not a pure military man. He not only presided over local military and political affairs, but also served as the Jin Kingdom's envoy to the Song Kingdom on New Year's Day. In front of all the civil and military officials of the Song Kingdom, he used the story of Zhao Ji and Zhao Heng to severely scold Zhao Gou, scolding him so much that he covered his face and walked away in the court.

What Gao Jingshan said now was nothing more than his intention to promote Gao Anren.

But Gao Anren remained calm and composed. After bowing his hands in thanks, he said in a deep voice, "Boss, please allow me to report something else."

Gao Jingshan nodded. This was another reason why Gao Anren was summoned today. "Is it the guy who calls himself Liu Huai? Do you know him?"

Gao Anren smiled bitterly and shook his head: "Of course I know them. That Flying Tiger flag still often appears in my dreams and wakes me up. I will never forget them in my life.

"General, that's Liu Huai, the top general under Wei Sheng, commander of the Shandong Loyal Army, also known as the Flying Tiger." Following him is Xin Qiji of the Shandong Tianping Army. He's a renowned scholar in the north, but he's known for his brutal use of force, earning him the nickname "the Great Blue Rhinoceros." It's fair to say that Prefect Pushan was defeated by these two combined, and I, meanwhile, was beaten along the way, feeling as terrified as a lost dog.

Neither of these two should be underestimated, and their appearance indicates that the Shandong rebel army has already dispatched its elite troops to join the battle."

Gao Jingshan narrowed his eyes: "Is it that loyal army?"

Gao Anren nodded heavily. "It was the loyal and righteous army that defeated my father with only a few hundred soldiers and captured the entire territory of Haizhou. They also defeated the prefect Pushan, captured Linyi, and cut off the passage to Yishui.

A few days ago, I heard that Meng Tian, the commander-in-chief of the Wuxing Army, was also defeated by him. Even the navy and infantry came out in full force, but they were unable to defeat them.

"Master, the Shandong men have become seasoned warriors and are no longer the mob they were a few years ago. If you underestimate them, you'll end up in big trouble."

Gao Jingshan nodded, then shook his head again. "Even if the Shandong Loyalty Army can be trained, how many soldiers will it have? How many of them can actually march south to join the war? My dear nephew, although you've been in the military before, you don't know how formidable our army is today. You also don't know that if a large elite force is assembled and commanded properly, the effect it can exert is far more than simply adding up numbers."

Seeing Gao Anren was a little confused, Gao Jingshan explained: "My dear nephew, you will understand after a few more years of training. I am telling you now that our three armies of ten thousand households are gathered together. With the combat power of the Song Dynasty, there is no way they can deal with us. So the Lianghuai army can rest assured to split into two groups. As long as they don't make mistakes, they can always protect themselves.

"The Loyal Army is not Yue's army, which boasts 100,000 infantry and cavalry. What can they do to me? If they truly possessed the fighting power of Yue's army, why would they bother coming to Lianghuai to curry favor with the Song? They would have long ago taken Damingfu and Yanjing and established a new state."

After Gao Jingshan finished speaking, Gao Anren's brows furrowed even deeper.

Gao Anren had seen this solemn and confident expression twice on his father's and Pushandamo's faces. If it happened again and again, even a fool would be worried.

But Gao Anren also knew that he was now a small and powerless person, and it was already the limit for him to mention the Shandong Volunteer Army. It was impossible for him to change the strategy of the army with just one word. For a moment, he could only sigh slightly, secretly guarding himself and burying the matter in his heart.

The Jin army was licking its wounds, while the Song army camp at Guazhou Ferry had become a sea of jubilation because of the great victory at Zaojiaolin. Liu Qi and Ye Yiwen were not stingy and directly treated the entire army to a feast and a good meal.

Although the two Jin army generals Gao Jingshan and Han Tang were not captured this time, one of the general's flags was captured. In short, half of Gao Jingshan's head was chopped off, which can be regarded as a great victory.

Liu Huai and Xin Qiji, as guest generals and the main force of today's victory, were also arranged to have a banquet in the central army tent. Their seats were even relatively close to the front, sitting together with Lu You and He Boqiu, forming a small circle.

Liu Huai, Lu You and He Boqiu all knew the Song army's temper, so they were not surprised. They just ate and drank as usual, and raised their glasses from time to time with generals they knew or didn't know, to build relationships with them.

Xin Qiji was finally enlightened. To be honest, he could not think of anything to celebrate.

It's not like they defeated the Jin army or killed a few powerful Jin generals. They just defeated a vanguard and killed a few hundred Jin soldiers.

To put it bluntly, if the Jingnan Army had not joined the battlefield, this battle would not even be considered a heavy loss of life.

If we don't hold a military meeting to review the situation, what's the point of celebrating?!
"Why are you overthinking so much?" Liu Huai raised his wine bowl filled with clear water and clinked it with Xin Qiji's. "You have to get used to this. Think about it, given the behavior of the Jin, if the Song truly surpassed the Han and Tang dynasties, how could they have managed to defend their borders from the Huai River to the Yangtze River?"

Lu You's face turned pale when he heard this. He looked around and saw that the others were far away from their small circle. Liu Huai's voice was not loud, so no one would hear him. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief, but he still pulled Liu Huai's sleeve and said, "Da Lang, be careful with your words."

"Oh? Luo Dalang is here?" Liu Huai turned his head and saw Lu You's expression, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. He slapped his forehead and said, "Alas, I spoke out of turn after drinking... after drinking. I hope Mr. Lu will forgive me."

Seeing his opponent's languid demeanor, Lu You could only shrug his shoulders. Turning back, he saw high-ranking officials and military officers, who had achieved nothing since the loss of the Huai River region, boasting and acting recklessly. Today's key contributor, Yuan Qi, couldn't even enter the general's tent. Wei Yongshou and his son, second in rank, wore worried expressions. Liu Huai and Xin Qiji, widely acknowledged to have made the greatest contributions, were forced to drink water instead of wine, fearing they would miss out on military action. Lu You could only sigh inwardly.

"Everyone." Liu Qi, who sat at the head of the table, clapped his hands. The tent suddenly fell silent. Everyone put down their food and waited quietly for Liu Qi's instructions. "Today's great victory at Zaojiao Forest will surely go down in history. You are all people who have made great contributions. With Lord Lin and I personally recommending you, you will surely receive generous rewards. But today's feast is for tomorrow's victory. What follows is a fierce battle. I hope you will all work hard."

At this point, Liu Qi's face flushed unnaturally. "I've already brought my wife, Sun, from Zhenjiang Prefecture to Guazhou Ferry. If we win, everyone will drink to celebrate. If we lose, the whole family will be devastated and the country will be in jeopardy. That's all!"

(End of this chapter)