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

Chapter 711 The Iron Cavalry of the North and South Use Their Methods

white horse.

Just as Heshi Lieliangbi was about to board the ferry, he saw a military envoy riding up on horseback.

“Lord Liangbi, bandits from Shandong are chasing us from behind. General Jiagu is dealing with them. He sent me to tell you to quickly lead the army across the river.”

Heshi Lieliangbi frowned: "How many troops have the Shandong bandits brought?"

This question is perfectly reasonable.

If the Shandong rebels mobilized a large number of troops, the Jin army would not have needed to confront the Han army's fortified groups in Daming Prefecture, and even Heshi Lieliangbi would not have needed to cross the Yellow River; he could have directly led his army to fight a decisive battle with the Han army.

If only a small number of Shandong rebels were pursuing them, wouldn't Jia Gu Qingchen be able to handle it on his own? Why the panic?
The military envoy said, "We only have a few hundred cavalrymen now, but more troops may follow. Please make preparations as soon as possible, Lord Liangbi!"

That's as good as saying nothing at all.

But Heshi Lieliangbi was not angry. He handed over the troops to his deputy and boarded a ferry to cross the Yellow River.

The Yellow River is not as wide as the Yangtze River, and semi-permanent pontoon bridges are used at high-quality ferry crossings like Baima.

To prevent Wanyan Yong from launching a surprise attack on Bianliang, Wanyan Liang removed the pontoon bridge, but he could not destroy it.

The reason Heshi Lieliangbi crossed the river this time was to discuss with Zhang Hao or Pusan ​​Zhongyi the possibility of setting up a pontoon bridge so that the army could cross the river.

Having just returned to Bianliang yesterday, Pu Sanzhongyi, upon hearing Heshi Lie Liangbi's demands on the south bank of the river, couldn't help but sneer out loud: "Is Prime Minister Liangbi being a bit delusional?"

Heshi Lieliangbi and Pusan ​​Zhongyi had known each other for a long time. Upon hearing this, he spread his hands and replied, "Well, it's not that I'm being delusional, but that's just how the situation is. Do you really have the troops to attack Xuzhou?"

The bloodstains on Pu Sanzhongyi's body had not yet dissipated. He rubbed his slightly cracked right hand and said, "This time I have already defeated Cheng Min. As long as I kill Zhang Jun and Yu Yunwen, the Song Dynasty's Northern Expedition will become a joke. At that time, Xuzhou will be a piece of cake. Then I will need to trouble Prime Minister Liangbi to continue to keep Liu Dalang in check for me in Daming Prefecture!"

Although his words were somewhat sarcastic, since Pusan ​​Zhongyi had already tested the Song army's strength, he was naturally about 80% confident.

What elite Song army? They're just a bunch of trash.

Heshi Lieliangbi shook his head and replied: "I have carefully read the military report. Cheng Min's main force of the Ezhou army participated in the Battle of Chaoxian and suffered heavy casualties. The most elite Beiwei Army was decimated. It is absolutely impossible to rebuild it in just two years."

Pu Sanzhongyi's eyes narrowed, and he said in a deep voice, "So, according to what Prime Minister Liangbi said, I picked a soft persimmon?"

Heshi Lieliangbi shook his head again: "I'm not in Nanyang, how would I know how much merit Cheng Min still possesses? However..."

As he spoke, Heshi Lieliangbi pointed to the east: "I truly know how powerful the Shandong bandits are; we could never have too many soldiers."

Pusan ​​Zhongyi stared intently at Heshi Lie Liangbi with eyes as sharp as a hawk's. After pacing back and forth for a moment, he finally said, "Lord Liangbi, have you been in contact with Asa recently?"

Asa is the Jurchen name of Pucha Shijie.

"Of course not," Heshi Lieliangbi said frankly, "but I had some conversations with Minister Shi in the south, and I don't know if that might offend you, Wu Zhe."

Pu Sanwu shook his head and said, "Without Minister Shi, the Huaibei prefectures would not have been able to recover so quickly. I admire his abilities."

"Very well, Xiao Loushi, since you have released Asa from Xuzhou and sent Minister Shi to maintain the livelihood of the people in Henan, I will still give you some face."

"I'll have a pontoon bridge set up right away."

"I will also have local officials provide provisions for your 10,000 troops."

“But you can only station your troops in Bozhou. Xiao Loushi, didn’t you want to attack Xuzhou? Bozhou is enough for you to cause trouble.”

"You don't need to worry about the Song army's northern expeditionary forces; I will handle them personally."

"Little Lou Shi, let me make this clear from the start: if your 10,000 troops dare to appear west of the Wo River, then I will consider you a traitor who launched a sneak attack on Bianliang."

"At that time, I won't care about the Song army or the Shandong bandits anymore. I'll just lead my army and deal with you first!"

With each word he spoke, Pusan ​​Zhongyi took a step closer. His exceptionally tall stature soon pressed down on Heshi Lie Liangbi like a mountain crashing down on him.

Heshi Lieliangbi displayed a rather unassuming demeanor, simply wiping his face with his sleeve before smiling and saying, "Then I will share a region with Wu Zhe. After we defeat the Shandong bandits and drive away the Song army, we can discuss other matters later."

Pu Sanzhongyi smiled and said, "In this regard, I still trust Xiao Loushi."

With that, the two high-fived each other as a pledge.

Subsequently, the pontoon bridge was quickly built, and the army led by Heshi Lieliangbi swiftly boarded the pontoon bridge and marched south along the official road on the south bank of the Yellow River.

It truly was a scene of vibrant life, with everything flourishing.

However, the only downside was that Kiyotomi Kagaya returned to his unit in a near-disarray with his personal guards, startling even Tadashi Pusan. "Is a large army pursuing us?!"

Jia Gu Qingchen shook his head in a flustered manner: "No."

Pu Sanzhongyi gasped: "Could it be that the traitor Liu from Shandong has personally come here?"

Jia Gu Qingchen was even more embarrassed, shaking his head repeatedly: "It's not Liu the traitor either."

"It's Zhang Baiyu."

“Zhang Baiyu?” Pu Sanzhongyi, who also knew the general of the Shandong Han Army very well, was immediately surprised upon hearing this: “How could a mere dueling match have driven you to this state?”

"Zhang Baiyu is no longer just a general at this time; he is the commander-in-chief of the Dongping Army and can be considered one of the top generals in Shandong."

Heshi Lieliangbi offered a consolation for Jia Gu Qingchen, then asked him, "How is the battle going?"

Kiyotomi Kagaya removed his helmet and hung it beside his saddle, sweat pouring down his forehead: "This humble general... is no match for him..."

At this point, Kiyotomi Kagaya was filled with shame and indignation.

Not only did he fail to defeat Zhang Baiyu, he was also nearly killed on the spot.

If it weren't for the timely arrival of reinforcements, and Zhang Baiyu's decision not to linger in battle, Jia Gu Qingchen might not have made it back.

As it turned out, in these small-scale conflicts, when it came to martial prowess, the Han generals, who rose from humble beginnings and crawled out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood, were far superior to the Jurchen military nobles who had only received a full education.

Heshi Lieliangbi nodded and said, "Don't take it to heart. Great generals are all about strategy, not brute force. But if that's the case, then our army's direction of advance has likely been discovered. Let's cross the river quickly."

Jia Gu Qingchen was filled with shame and could only nod repeatedly.

After suffering consecutive defeats at the hands of two Han generals, Jia Gu Qingchen's original arrogance had been almost completely worn away.

The Han army is no pushover like the Khitan or the Mongol army!

On the other side, Zhang Baiyu had already extracted the Jin army's destination from the prisoners, and he was shocked.

However, he did not return to Bozhou immediately. Instead, he wrote two documents. One was given to his personal guard to deliver to Guan Chongyan, the commander of the Flying Tiger Army in Jizhou, and the other was given to Wei Sheng in Xuzhou.

Ten thousand Jin troops are heading south to the Central Plains, and their destination is very likely Xuzhou. We must make preparations as soon as possible.

After watching the military envoy leave, Zhang Baiyu immediately led his troops back to Bozhou and told Liu Huai about this crucial news.

This is, after all, a force of 10,000 men; who knows what kind of trouble they'll cause once they arrive in Henan.

The news traveled very quickly as the military envoys galloped at breakneck speed, disregarding the casualties of their warhorses.

The first to receive the news was Guan Chongyan, the commander of the Flying Tigers, who immediately convened a military meeting with the other three.

"The Flying Tiger Army and the White Horse Army are the elite of the entire army. Are we really going to send them out so lightly?" Liu Kuo, the deputy commander of the White Horse Army, who was formerly Yelü Kuoli, said with some hesitation, "Should we ask Lord Wei for permission first?"

Before the two commanders, Guan Chongyan and Chen Wenben, could respond, Xiao Pennu, the commander of the White Horse Army, replied solemnly: "It's too late. Besides, the Commander-in-Chief placed our elite force in Jizhou, instructing us to adapt to changing circumstances, precisely so that we might be of some use now."

Guan Chongyan immediately nodded in agreement, saying, "Old Xiao is right. Old Chen, do you have anything else to say?"

Chen Wenben hesitated for a moment, then looked at Guan Chongyan: "Seventh Brother, it's not that I'm afraid of war, but do you have any ideas on how far we should fight?"

Guan Chongyan said proudly, "Of course, I want to use the Flying Tiger Army's superior numbers to swallow these ten thousand Jin bandits whole. But ultimately, a decision must be made on the battlefield. Commander Xiao..."

Xiao Pennu quickly cupped his hands in greeting: "Yes, sir."

"The White Horse Army will prepare food at midnight and set off at dawn. They will cross the Yellow River at Danzhou and spread out in Guide Prefecture, south of the Yellow River. I need all the intelligence on the Jin traitors."

This was naturally a tough task, because once they crossed the Yellow River to the south, they would be out of the sphere of influence of the Shandong Han Army, and with the Yellow River right behind them, it would be difficult to advance or retreat quickly.

It can be said that once the White Horse Army crossed the river, they would be ready to fight a desperate battle.

However, an army is raised for a thousand days but used for only one.

Is the purpose of giving the White Horse Army the same treatment as the Flying Tigers to wait for them to be ready to fight to the death at times like this?

Xiao Pennu immediately cupped his hands in agreement: "This humble general obeys the order. This humble general will certainly delay and exhaust the Jin invaders! We will wait for the Flying Tiger Army to arrive on the battlefield!"

Guan Chongyan immediately nodded in agreement: "General Xiao has not failed me, and I will naturally not fail General Xiao. As soon as the White Horse Army discovers the traces of the Jin bandits, the Flying Tiger Army will set off immediately!"

(End of this chapter)