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

Chapter 584 Listening to the Drums and Horns to Discern the Enemy's Situation

The fire spread faster than Yiladao had anticipated.

On October 15th, the day after the Wu'an army arrived in Xucheng, the Jin army officially began its siege.

Xucheng is right next to Liangshan Marsh, with the Beiqing River to the west and the Wen River to the east. It is surrounded by water on three sides and has a moat to the north, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack.

If the attack is only carried out by cavalry and infantry, building camps and siege equipment from scratch will inevitably be a long and arduous task.

However, the Jin army had a navy this time, and even if these merchant ships converted into warships were no longer usable, they still had the ability to transport large amounts of military supplies.

In particular, after the Wu'an Army advanced by both land and water and captured the water fortress set up by the Tianping Army on the Beiqing River, the Jin Army gained a naval advantage on this battlefield and could move freely on the water.

After a brief assessment of the situation, Gao Jingshan ordered the Wu'an Army to capture able-bodied men from all around to serve as conscripts, and to unload wooden railings and ladders from the ships. In just two days, they completely surrounded Xucheng and attempted to breach the city.

Although it was just an experiment, Gao Jingshan did not hold back. While attacking the city from the front across the moat, a large number of ships also attached themselves to the city walls, and ladders were erected on the decks for the Jin army to climb the city walls.

Moreover, Gao Jingshan abandoned the tradition of using conscripted soldiers to lead the charge, and instead deployed the elite regular army of the Jin Dynasty.

The Taiping soldiers defending the city quickly sensed Gao Jingshan's determination. Although the Jin army only had simple siege weapons such as ladders, they still inflicted heavy casualties on the Taiping army. Several sections of the city wall almost fell. In the end, it was only by the generals leading their personal guards to personally charge and fight that the Jin army was pushed back.

Neither side held back, and the war quickly escalated to a fever pitch.

After two days of this, Shao Jin finally could not bear it any longer. On the night of October 17th, he led three hundred elite soldiers out in a raid, attempting to storm the camp.

However, Gao Jingshan was prepared. After the camp was attacked, he did not panic at all and immediately ordered the defending troops to launch a counterattack.

This fellow didn't even get up from his tent; he simply lay there and still managed to make Shao Jin flee in a sorry state.

It can only be said that raiding a camp is indeed a technical job, and Shao Jin's skills were a bit too rough.

However, during this night raid, Shao Jin managed to send several military envoys out amidst the chaos, informing Geng Jing of this critical news while simultaneously requesting reinforcements from the Loyal Army.

Faced with such a powerful offensive, a city-wide mobilization was necessary, but Kong Duanqi was astonished to find that the wealthy families in the city were unwilling to contribute manpower, money, and food to resist the Jin.

Under normal circumstances, the garrison commander should have shown the wealthy families in the city at this point whether words or swords had more say.

However, the situation was different for the Taiping army, especially within Suji.

Because the people in power here are a group of old and new powerful figures.

Take Zhang Nan, for example, who claims to have an honest and upright family. His family is a wealthy family in Tai'an Prefecture. He doesn't need to be the one to commit corruption. Relying on his power in the government, his family can naturally make a fortune.

After arriving in Dongping Prefecture, he quickly arranged marriages with local wealthy families. He had three in-laws in Xucheng alone, either a brother-in-law or a brother-in-law. How could he possibly bring himself to do something so drastic?
If that were all, it wouldn't be so bad. Zhang Nan has an official position, so he wouldn't be so easily manipulated by these landlords.

But the key point is that Zhang Nan and his group also knew that the Song Dynasty would not send reinforcements, and they also knew that Kong Duanqi had brought back an envoy from the Jin Dynasty, which inevitably made them have other ideas.

There is another way to go, isn't there?
Zhang Nan and the others became half-hearted.

Xucheng was plunged into a situation of internal and external troubles almost instantly. It can only be said that Yila Dao was indeed a famous minister during the Dading period of the Jin Dynasty. He had a clear understanding of the situation.

The situation in Dongping Prefecture was chaotic.

Meanwhile, Liu Huai, who was in Pizhou, received accurate information from all sides amidst the chaos, and was also caught in a dilemma.

The Song Dynasty's response was relatively straightforward: Yu Yunwen indicated that he would provide food supplies and allow Li Xianzong to be stationed in the northwestern part of Huaihe River to threaten the Jin army at Wokou.

At the same time, four large ships carrying provisions were transported north, which was the greatest support Yu Yunwen could provide.

Although the Song state's enforcement efforts have always been questionable, Li Xianzong is still trustworthy.

As for Zhang Zigai and Liu Bao, who were stationed in Shanyang, they could not be trusted at all.

Originally, Liu Huai had no intention of paying any attention to these two useless bastards, but Wei Sheng still wrote a letter, hoping that they could head north near Suzhou and make a show of surrounding the Jin army in Xuzhou.

Zhang Zigai's response was simple: no response.

I heard that the military envoy wasn't even allowed to enter the city gates of Shanyang; he was immediately turned back.

The reaction of Xuzhou in the Jin Kingdom was rather intriguing.

After Heshi Lieliangbi resolved the internal conflicts, he only dispatched Gao Jingshan of the Wu'an Army to launch a fierce attack on Dongping Prefecture, while he led the remaining two commanders to stay in Xuzhou like a coward, and did not make any move.

Liu Huai also wondered if the intelligence sent by Wen Dunqizhi was wrong, or if Heshi Lieliangbi simply had a plan.

But after waiting for several days, and with more and more intelligence sources and increasingly accurate information, he was finally able to confirm that the main force of the Jin army was indeed out of commission.

Now it was Liu Huai's turn to hesitate.

Just like when Hong Qigong first met the madman Ouyang Feng, he panicked.

Normally, everyone could fight to a draw, but Ouyang Feng was crawling like a dog and slapping himself in the face. Who wouldn't be shocked to see that?
Liang Su also fell into self-doubt.

As a former high-ranking official of the Jin Dynasty, Liang Su had a fairly clear understanding of the factions within the Jin Dynasty, and he also knew that once the army was mobilized, it would not waste time like this.

Does Heshi Lieliangbi not understand the principle that speed is of the essence in war, and that delay will lead to unforeseen changes?
Therefore, the Jin army must have had some reasons for doing this.

"We can't just stand by and watch!" On October 21, when Liu Huai received the urgent letter for help from Dongping Prefecture, he finally couldn't hold back any longer: "Mr. Liang, Zhang Silang, you two should continue to lead your troops to garrison in Pizhou. I'm going to Xuzhou to investigate."

Zhang Baiyu and Liang Su immediately objected, but before they could speak, Liu Huai waved his hand and said, "My mind is made up. The situation is strange and serious. Dongping Prefecture may not be able to hold out for long. We may have to mobilize both the Loyal Army and the Jingnan Army. I want to go and see for myself, at least to determine the direction of the Jin army's attack!"

Liang Su remained silent, only looking at Zhang Baiyu.

Zhang Baiyu understood and immediately said, "If you don't trust others, I can lead the men myself. Don't you trust me?"

Liu Huai shook his head: "That's not the point. Once I've investigated the situation, I can make a decision immediately and send military envoys to issue orders in all directions. No one else can do that."

Zhang Baiyu thought about it and realized that it made sense, but he still didn't dare to let Liu Huai take the risk. He could only stand there with his hands clasped and remain silent.

At this point, Liu Huai was no longer just a general, but a leader of a political faction. Many people's lives, honors, and disgraces were entrusted to him, so they had to be cautious.

Liu Huai, however, took Zhang Baiyu's silence as tacit agreement and immediately pressed his advantage, issuing a military order: "Zhang Silang, you will command the entire army. The Flying Tiger Army and the Dongping Army will all be under your command. Two thousand more troops will arrive later, and they will all be with you. At that time, you will have four thousand regular troops, enough to stand alone."

Zhang Baiyu's breathing became somewhat heavy.

As one of the commanders in the Jingnan Army, Zhang Baiyu knew as early as when he was dispatched to take charge of the Dongping Army in Lianghuai that sooner or later he would become a general who could stand alone. However, he did not expect that day to come so quickly and so suddenly.

Moreover, the Flying Tiger Army was under his command, which made Zhang Baiyu feel somewhat apprehensive.

"Si Lang, you have commanded the Flying Tiger Army for a long time, so I won't call Guan Qi Lang in." Seeing that Zhang Baiyu wanted to decline, Liu Huai continued, "Giving you the Flying Tiger Army is both a power and a heavy responsibility. I hope you will seize the opportunity and take Pengcheng! Moreover, if our army fights the Jin invaders in Dongping Prefecture, you will have to lead the Flying Tiger Army on a long-distance raid to provide support, which is a great responsibility. Si Lang, I hope you will not let me down."

Zhang Baiyu's blood boiled, and he clasped his hands in a loud acceptance.

"Mr. Liang, you will continue to oversee civil affairs in Pizhou and assume the responsibilities of the prefect. You must stabilize grain prices and ensure the livelihood of the people. All funds, grain, and cloth are at your disposal. I have only one condition: do not allow any trouble to occur in Pizhou."

After a moment's thought, Liang Su could only nod emphatically.

"In that case, there's no time to lose." Liu Huai shouted, "Chen Wulang!"

Chen Wenben, who had been guarding the entrance of the main tent, strode in and loudly replied, "Your subordinate is here!"

"Gather fifty cavalrymen and come with me to Xuzhou to investigate!"

"Here!"

(End of this chapter)