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

Chapter 757 One Man Riding Alone, Supporting His Back and Courage

Who was Wei Sheng?
He was the first person to advocate a northern expedition, twenty years after the peace treaty in Shaoxing.

He was the most successful Northern Expeditionist after Yue Fei.

He was also the founder of the Loyal and Righteous Army and the founder of the Shandong Righteous Army.

He was the nominal leader and spiritual leader of all the rebel armies in the North.

Although Liu Huai had gradually replaced Wei Sheng as the military and political leader by virtue of his military achievements, who could underestimate Wei Sheng?
Isn't it a bit too arrogant of you to try to sideline such a person so easily?

However, He Boqiu, the Third Master He, was no ordinary person.

Not to mention that he had become Liu Huai's confidant early on, he was already acquainted with Wei Sheng when he was a local tycoon in Yizhou, and the two had been friends for more than ten years.

To put it bluntly, while the two sides were addressing each other by personal names like "He Sanlang" and "Wei Dadao," the people in the tent were nowhere to be found.

"Chief Clerk He is mistaken."

The first to speak out was not a former member of the Loyal Army, nor was it Lu You, whose face remained pale and uncertain, but Chen Liang, who had been sitting silently in the corner.

This famous hothead from the Song Dynasty toured the local prefectures and counties, presided over the spring planting and autumn harvest, and after making some contributions, he almost couldn't wait to apply to Liu Huai to join the army.

He first served as a military staff officer in the Tianping Army, and later continued to accumulate merits, eventually arriving at the General Staff Headquarters of the Han Army, where he continued to serve as a military staff officer under He Boqiu, in charge of some logistical affairs.

If Chen Liang were to speak out in rebuttal at this moment, it would be tantamount to going against his superior, and he would likely face repercussions in the future.

Of course, if he cared about these things, he wouldn't be the Chen Tongfu who was repeatedly demoted in history.

Besides, Chen Liang is only in his early twenties. What kind of young man isn't impetuous?

Chen Liang stood up angrily: "Leaving aside the absurdity of undermining the Marshal, Shandong and the Great Song are now in a relationship of shared glory and shared shame. If we allow the Great Song's northern expedition to fail, then we will have to face the attack of the two Jin states alone. Wouldn't that ruin everything?"

He Boqiu also stood up angrily, his expression even more intense, and glared at Chen Liang, saying, "Chen Dalang, why are you still clinging to outdated ideas?! There are no two Jin kingdoms left now! As long as we take down these 20,000 elite Jin bandits from Daming Prefecture, half of the Eastern Jin will be gone! As for the Western Jin, their capital Bianliang is only a hundred miles away from Dongping Prefecture. How could we not take it? Without Bianliang, how much of the Western Jin will be left?"

As for the Song state, Chen Dalang, you tell me, over the years, although we haven't always obeyed Song's orders, we've still sent our sons and daughters to fight in the Huai River region. When it was time to send troops in response, we've never hesitated. When has Song ever truly helped Shandong? When haven't we been the ones cleaning up Song's messes? Can this kind of relationship be considered sharing both honor and disgrace?

No sooner had He Boqiu finished speaking than Liang Su crossed his arms and said, "Chief Secretary He, you didn't understand what Chen Dalang meant. He was saying that if we can't maintain relations with the Song Dynasty, the Emperor might turn around and negotiate peace with the Jin Dynasty to jointly attack Shandong. At that time, we will be attacked from three sides, and then everything will be over."

This sarcastic and unsettling tone was so skillful that several officials from the State of Song turned their heads in surprise.

Chen Liang was both shocked and furious, and was about to retort.

"Alright!" Liu Huai spoke softly from the main seat, immediately silencing everyone: "You can discuss these matters at the post-war debriefing meeting; now we're going to talk about military strategy."

As Liu Huai spoke, he turned to look at one of the men: "Mr. Lu, do you have anything to say?"

Lu You was still somewhat dazed. Upon hearing this, he murmured, "The Great Song... the Great Song really suffered such a crushing defeat?"

Liu Huai sighed: "It's absolutely true. The military report has already written it clearly. Otherwise, my father wouldn't have broken his promise to me and sent troops to Suzhou."

Upon hearing this, Lu You shook his head, then sighed heavily: "So, it means that Minister Yu did not go to the Wei army to take command?"

Liu Huai nodded in agreement.

Lu You wanted to give Zhang Jun and Yu Yunwen a good scolding, but when he thought that the two of them were probably also in a terrible predicament, he couldn't help but feel helpless.

He wanted to curse Zhang Heng and Shao Hongyuan again, but ultimately kept quiet because he didn't know how the battle was going.

Perhaps the armies of Huaidong and Huaixi had actually fought with all their might, but were defeated because of a single miscalculation?
At this point, Lu You could only try to make amends in his heart.

As for today's military meeting, Lu You didn't take He Boqiu's outburst or Liang Su's sarcastic remarks to heart.

This is actually a typical political upheaval caused by a defeat on the battlefield. The victor should not be criticized, which means that even breathing is wrong for the loser.

Seeing that Liu Huai was still looking at him with some expectation, Lu You shook his head and smiled bitterly: "In the current situation, I am a scholar who knows nothing about military affairs... um?"

Finally, Lu You had a flash of inspiration and immediately realized: "I will go to Suzhou now, Da Lang. Give me the official military order and flag. I also need the token and a blank document with the seal of the Jiedushi Prefecture."

Liu Huai seemed to have been waiting for this, and immediately nodded in agreement: "I will have Cao Dache lead a hundred armored cavalry to escort you." Cao Dache was a veteran who had joined the Northern Expeditionary Army in Haizhou. By now, he had accumulated merits and become the third general of the Flying Tiger Army. Although he was old, he was studious and made rapid progress. In just two years, he went from being completely illiterate to being a person with a basic understanding of literature.

During this period, Cao Dache frequently sought Lu You's advice, and the two developed a teacher-student relationship.

Lu You shook his head: "No need for a hundred riders, fifty will suffice. I am not going to fight on the battlefield this time, but to provide insurance for Duke Wei."

Liu Huai readily agreed: "Mr. Lu, let's set off first thing tomorrow morning."

Lu You immediately stood up: "No, I'll leave now. The sooner I get to Suzhou, the more at ease I'll feel."

After this exchange, the less intelligent remained confused, while the clever ones suddenly understood.

The Han army's deployment in Daming Prefecture is now almost complete. No matter which force is mobilized south, it will inevitably create gaps in the encirclement in a hasty move.

Especially when the Jin reinforcements are poised to arrive, mobilizing troops at the last minute could very well lead to a major mishap.

More importantly, large-scale military operations involve a wide range of people and are slow, so it's uncertain whether they will be able to make it in time.

Since we cannot find a way to compensate militarily, we can only resort to political means.

Although Wei Sheng's words in his letter were sincere and earnest, saying that he would definitely be careful, Liu Huai believed that since Wei Sheng had already broken his promise, everything that followed was out of control.

It should be understood that this was not an agreement between a son and his father, but a political promise made by the Shandong rebel army marshal to the military governor of the Jingnan army.

Since Liu Huai simply couldn't control Wei Sheng, he could only add some insurance to his account.

For example, Lu You.

If there was anyone in the State of Song who didn't want Wei to suffer an unexpected defeat, besides Yu Yunwen, it would be Lu You.

To put it bluntly, with Wei Sheng still alive, Liu Huai has already started promising him the title of Duke of the State. If something happens to Wei Sheng, who can control Liu Huai? What if Shandong rebels all at once?

Therefore, once in Suzhou, Lu You will do everything in his power to ensure Wei Sheng's safety. At that time, as the Pacification Commissioner of Shandong, he will be able to crush everyone on the Song side.

"Mr. Lu, please take a seat." Although Liu Huai was anxious inside, he remained calm on the surface: "In any case, we must finish the military council first."

"What about the others? Do they have any military suggestions? They can speak now."

Liu Huai surveyed his generals.

Although today's discussions are about major military and political issues, one of them was prepared in advance, while the other was too far in the future. Therefore, the specific implementation of the Han army's current military strategy has not changed much.

Seeing that everyone remained silent, Liu Huai immediately said, "That's good. Listen to my orders."

"Commander Chen, have the craftsmen speed up the construction of the catapult."

"Master Zhang, continue to rush the production of gunpowder and cannonballs."

"Qin, your calculation of the shell trajectory is excellent. It must not be delayed. I will send some people skilled in divination to assist you."

"Commander Huyan, you will continue to command the four cannons. After the siege camp is established, you must begin bombarding the city walls. I want to see results within twenty days."

"Xu Daguan, organize the laborers to dig trenches and build earthen walls, as close to the city walls as possible. If the cannons can't break through, then the warriors will have to get close and blow up the city."

"Here!"

After giving instructions to several long-range weapon commanders and logistics personnel, Liu Huai then looked at Zhang Baiyu and the other cavalry generals: "You guys need to be prepared. There will be tough battles to fight after this one. The cavalry will follow me and provide rapid support to Xuzhou."

"Here!"

"Gentlemen, I originally intended to thoroughly survey Daming Prefecture, hoping to entangle as many Jin bandits as possible, thus preparing for the future conquest of Youyan and Jin. However, the situation is now out of control, and time is of the essence. I have decided to take Daming Prefecture as quickly as possible, so that we can respond to any eventuality with composure."

Since you all follow my lead, then you should do your utmost to seize all 20,000 taels of gold that are already in your hands!

Liu Huai's expression was serious, and his military orders were ruthless, but the generals showed no panic or hesitation; instead, they all became excited.

The Han generals were already quite capable of fighting the main Jin army, so why would they be afraid of a trapped enemy or two groups of Jin reinforcements who were full of concerns?
(End of this chapter)