Chapter 403: Rewards based on merit
After Yelu Yixin learned about the situation, he felt that this was a God-given opportunity. When the second heavy snow fell in the Liao Kingdom and the roads were covered with thick layers of academics, he chose Send troops to make a sneak attack.
The road is covered with snow, making it difficult for even the infantry to walk, let alone the cavalry.
In addition, Yelu Yixin had been defending against Yelu Zhongyuan, so Yelu Zhongyuan naturally did not expect that Yelu Yixin would make a sneak attack at this time.
Without the slightest precaution, someone inside betrayed him, and he was easily attacked by Yelu Yixin.
In the end, they only took tens of thousands of cavalry and fled deep into the grassland.
Yelu Yixin knew that this was an opportunity to completely eliminate Yelu Chongyuan, so he was naturally unwilling to let it go and led his troops to pursue him.
Otherwise, once Yelu Zhongyuan is allowed to regain his breath, pull up a force of troops and horses on the grassland, and wreak havoc on the vast grassland, the price of quelling it will be even greater.
Bazhou City
In the Chinese army camp, the British prince sat in front of the brazier, warming himself by the fire, beating his legs heavily with his hands, a look of pain on his face.
When the British Duke was young, he participated in the Song-Xia War, and later stayed in the north for many years.
It’s bitterly cold in the north. I didn’t feel it when I was young. But as I get older, my legs feel cold and painful every winter.
It was fine when I was in Bianjing, but now in the north, when the weather is cold, it is very uncomfortable.
However, he never showed it in front of outsiders, and only showed pain in private.
“Report!”
Suddenly, an announcement sounded outside the big tent.
“Come in!”
The British Duke endured the pain, his expression returned to normal, stood up, sat down on the main seat, and said in a deep voice.
The curtain opened, and a soldier came in, bowed and said: "Commander, there is news from the Liao Kingdom. Three days ago, Yelu Yixin led his troops to attack in a sneak attack. Yelu Chongyuan was defeated, leading tens of thousands of remaining soldiers. Fleeing to the grassland, Yelu Yixin is leading his troops to pursue him!"
The British Duke was shocked when he heard this, and he ciphered Yelu Zhongyuan, idiot, and said after a while: "Beat the drum and gather the generals!"
"Yes!"
The soldiers who reported the news bowed and retreated. After a while, the sound of drums sounded outside the tent.
The army generals heard the news and rushed to the camp one after another.
After everyone arrived, the British Duke explained the situation and said: "Everyone, the construction of the Great Wall in the North has not been completed yet. Once the civil strife in Liao subsides, and the Liao country has some time to rest and recuperate, troops will inevitably be sent to intervene. Therefore, the civil strife in Liao cannot be decided now. I am going to send troops to force Yelu Yixin to retreat and give Yelu Chongyuan a chance to breathe!"
"My lord, the weather is freezing and it is not a good time to send troops, and it is easy to do this. If it causes a war, should I submit a letter to His Majesty?" Chen Yao said.
"Of course you have to ask for instructions, but the roads in the north are blocked by heavy snow, and it takes too long to ask for instructions. Once it is delayed, Yelu Yixin pursues him deep into the grassland, and it is too late to send out troops. This move is just to force the Liao Kingdom to withdraw its troops, and it is not true. It will lead to war.
The Liao Dynasty has been in civil strife for a long time, and the Liao Kingdom will not go to war with the Song Dynasty easily.
Chen Yao heard this and said anxiously: "But if your Majesty does not agree to send troops, but we do send troops, what should we do if your Majesty blames us?"
The British Lord meant to ask for instructions as usual, but he We cannot wait for the imperial decree, but send troops first.
This is no different from killing first and reporting later. As the supervisor, Chen Yao naturally did not want to take this risk.
Although the British government says that the possibility of war is unlikely, what if it happens?
If it really caused a war with the Liao Kingdom and failed to win in the end, or if the Great Wall that had not yet been built in the north was damaged, someone would definitely need to take the blame.
The British Duke is the father of the queen and the father-in-law of the official family. When the time comes, he, the supervisor, will be the one to take the blame.
In terms of actual power, the supervisory army is greater than the chief general. When the two people have conflicts of opinion, the supervisory army can even directly take over military power. "If anything happens, I will take full responsibility for it." The British Duke said solemnly.
"Mr. British, that's not what I mean. I just feel that if you just send troops to threaten, it may not be effective. Compared with the Liao Kingdom, which has a strong city to defend, it is better to ask your Majesty for instructions first." Chen Yao said.
The British father said this. If he agreed directly, it would seem that he was afraid of responsibility.
Although this is true, Chen Yao also wants to have face.
“The Liao Kingdom has mobilized border troops several times, and now the city defenders are insufficient. Once the Song Dynasty sends troops, the Liao Kingdom must send troops to support. Although the Liao Kingdom defeated Yelu Chongyuan in a sneak attack, the chaos has not yet In this case, the Liao Kingdom can only withdraw its pursuing troops. If the Liao Kingdom does not withdraw its troops, I will really capture a city. I don't believe that the Liao Kingdom will not withdraw its troops."
When Chen Yao saw this, he stopped trying to persuade him. Anyway, everything that needed to be said had been said. The British Duke also promised in front of everyone that he would be responsible for anything that happened. Even if something happened, he would not be blamed. .
The other generals will not stop him. The role of generals can only be realized on the battlefield.
Who doesn’t want to be granted a title for meritorious service and a title for his wife and son?
If they were still a little scared in normal times, at this time, the Liao border was empty of troops, so there really was nothing to be afraid of.
Seeing that no one objected, the British immediately ordered the deployment of troops. In order to give the Liao Kingdom a sufficient threat, he directly mobilized 100,000 troops.
The Song Dynasty could defend the Liao Kingdom's border against five dangers, and vice versa.
Because the Liao Kingdom occupied too much territory of the Han people, the border areas facing the Song Dynasty were also plains.
The Song Dynasty was able to receive intelligence from the Liao Kingdom, and the Song Dynasty mobilized an army of 100,000. Naturally, such a big news could not be hidden from the Liao Kingdom.
In fact, the British Duke had no intention of hiding it, and deliberately made the situation louder to let the Liao Kingdom know the news.
His purpose was to force the Liao Kingdom to temporarily give up pursuing Yelu Chongyuan and give Yelu Chongyuan a chance to breathe.
The guards at the Liao border were frightened when they heard the news. While taking precautions, they sent people to Shangjing to ask for help.
In the face of Yelu Chongyuan's siege, Yelu Yixin mobilized border troops several times. Firstly, he did not think that the Song Dynasty would dare to take the initiative to invade the Liao Kingdom. Another reason was that he had no choice but to do so.
But no matter what, it is an indisputable fact that the Liao border troops are empty.
It means that the British did not really want to make a sneak attack, otherwise it would not be difficult to launch a sudden sneak attack and break through the Liao defense line.
Just doing this makes no sense. If the Song Dynasty wanted to drive the Liao Kingdom back to the grassland and regain the lost land, it would have to fight a protracted war to recapture the dangerous passes in the north.
Otherwise, no matter how much territory is conquered, the dangerous pass cannot be recaptured. Once the Song Dynasty retreats, the Liao Kingdom will be able to recapture it sooner or later.
Faced with the request for help from the border guard, Queen Mother Xiao of the Liao Kingdom knew that this was to force the Liao Kingdom to withdraw its troops, but she did not dare to gamble.
After more than a year of civil strife in the Liao Kingdom, its vitality has been severely damaged. Many cities in the country are now in chaos, and people are panicked.
If the Song Dynasty really breached the border, it would have a huge blow to the prestige of the Liao court.
Empress Dowager Xiao mobilized troops and horses to rush to the border for support. At the same time, she sent someone to send a message to Yelu Yixin, asking him to bring troops back.
…………
Zhao Xing has not yet heard the news from the border. He is currently busy formulating rewards for meritorious soldiers.
The rewards for soldiers are very simple. They are nothing more than giving some money, grain and land.
But officers and soldiers are different. Promotions and promotions must be carefully weighed.
(End of this chapter)