Standalone Northern and Southern Dynasties

Chapter 497: One Victory Leads to Another Victory

The Xiurong folks were the troops that Erzhu Rong used to start his career. Most of the elite soldiers under his command came from Xiurong.

Therefore, Erzhu Rong was very polite to Xiurong's fellow villagers. When he was in Jinyang, he also met with several of Xiurong's representatives in Jinyang.

But when an old man saw Erzhu Rong, he began to cry and snot.

If someone else did this, Erzhu Rong would probably let his personal guards drag the old man away, but since he was Xiurong's fellow villager, he had to show some kindness.

Erzhu Rong helped the old man up and said:

"If you have any grievances, just tell this general! I will definitely take care of it for you!"

The old man continued to cry until Erzhu Rong became impatient again. Then he said:
"I am originally a herdsman from Xiurong. I have served the Erzhu family since the general's ancestor."

Hearing this, Erzhu Rong's brows relaxed a little. Since he was old man Xiurong and an old subordinate of his grandfather, he still had to show leniency to him.

The old man continued:
"I have three sons. The eldest son followed the general into battle when he started his army and became his personal cavalryman."

Erzhu Rong asked the name again. He remembered that this soldier was selected by his own son. He then told the old man some old stories, which made the old man cry.

Originally, up to this point, the matter was a beautiful scene in which General Tianzhu showed favor to his subordinates and the people supported the general.

But the old man said, "It's a pity that my eldest son died in the battle against Ge Rong."

Hearing this, Erzhu Rong's face turned a little ugly.

The elimination of Ge Rong was a great victory, but Erzhu Rong also lost some elite troops, and the old man's eldest son died at that time.

The old man added: "My second son also signed up to join the army after hearing the news of my eldest son's death."

Hearing this, Erzhu Rong showed joy again. It was indeed a family of meritorious service!
No wonder this old man was recommended to him.

Erzhu Rong said excitedly: "Father, what is the name of your second son? This general will definitely support him well."

The old man said with a sad face:
"My second son died in the battle of Hulao Pass."

Erzhu Rong felt as if a stone was weighing on his heart. The old man said, "The officials came to my house again and asked my third son to join the army in place of my brother. He died in Yanmen again."

Hearing this, Erzhu Rong's heart was moved.

A general's success is the result of the sacrifice of thousands of soldiers. A general's order can determine the life and death of countless soldiers. At such times, a decision must be made.

But these losses are actually just a number. When the old man stood in front of Erzhu Rong and reported what had happened to his family, the feeling of facing it was completely different.

The generals behind Erzhu Rong also changed their expressions.

However, the old man's three sons had risked their lives for Erzhu Rong. If Erzhu Rong drove the old man away at this time, it would seem that he was too mean and ungrateful.

Erzhu Rong felt uncomfortable, but still said: "Your three sons have died for the country, you can live in Jinyang. Pass on my order to set up a nursing home in Jinyang to adopt widows and orphans whose sons died for the country."

Everyone praised Erzhu Rong's benevolent rule, and the old man was moved to tears. This story was supposed to have a touching ending.

But the old man knelt down and said:
"General, I won't live long. Many of my neighbors followed you to the battlefield. When you sent out the troops, you said they would take turns to guard the garrison. Can you let your children return home?"

After saying this, Erzhu Rong's expression changed.

The military system of the Northern Wei Dynasty was a combination of tribal soldiers and the conscription system.

In fact, Erzhu Rong's cavalry was similar to the fubing system implemented by Su Ze. They were originally herdsmen and farmers in Xiurong area. They usually grazed and farmed. During the slack season, they trained with Erzhu Rong. When it came to war, they were assembled to become Erzhu Rong's elite troops.

Erzhu Rong did promise in front of the soldiers that they would return home in glory if they won the battle.

However, as the battles became more and more numerous and larger in size, many of the 7,000 Xiurong cavalrymen were killed in battles led by Erzhu Rong. More importantly, the promise of taking turns to fight on the battlefield could not be fulfilled.

The reason is very simple. These are elite troops who have been trained with great difficulty. How can they be sent back to their hometown?

What to do if there are insufficient troops on the front line?
Even Erzhu Rong attracted some soldiers from the Six Garrisons to supplement his team.

But the new recruits who had just joined the army certainly could not meet his requirements, so the old soldiers had to serve as the backbone and continue to work.

The result was that the agreed return date was delayed, and the soldiers could only suffer again, and the infamous General Tianzhu had to bear the responsibilities.

It is definitely impossible to release these soldiers, as this would shake the foundation of Erzhu Rong's army.

Erzhu Rong's face darkened and he said:
"This is a matter of national importance. Please don't say too much. Someone, help me down to rest."

After sending the old man away, Erzhu Rong began to have a headache again.

Su Ze's march into Yanmen really hit Erzhu Rong's weak spot.

Will Xiurong defend or not?

It must be defended. Xiurong is not only the place where the Erzhu family started, but also the hometown of the elite troops under Erzhu Rong.

If Xiurong was lost, Erzhu Rong's army would certainly lose morale. But how to defend Xiurong?
From Yanmen Pass to the south all the way to Taiyuan area, it is all basins, without many dangerous passes. If you want to garrison them all, it will certainly take a lot of manpower.

What will happen to Hedong County if we leave our precious military forces here?
Will the newly conquered areas such as Hebei and Shandong rebel again?
There is also Gao Huan in Liaodong, and the Khitans also need support.

Erzhu Rong could only sigh. Given the situation, the key to breaking the impasse still lay on the battlefield.

As long as we can defeat Su Ze on the battlefield, everything will be fine! ——
At Yanmen Pass, Su Ze was checking the list of people returning home prepared by Dugu Xin.

"Let these soldiers on garrison duty return home tomorrow."

Dugu Xin couldn't help but say, "Mr. Jun, Erzhu Rong has already arrived in Jinyang. Now is the time to use troops. How can we let these old soldiers return home?"

Of course, Su Ze could not have released all the soldiers. These were some of the soldiers who had followed him to conquer Dingzhou last year. According to the military books at the time, their conscription period was one year, and now it was time to release them.

This accounts for about a quarter of the veterans of Yanmen Pass, but it is also a considerable number.

It is no wonder that Dugu Xin expressed his opposition. Since ancient times, has anyone ever voluntarily released soldiers when they were needed?
Su Ze also has his own ideas.

In fact, one of the reasons for the collapse of the Tang Dynasty's military system was that "the Guanzhong soldiers were used to whip the whole world, and Guanzhong became increasingly tired."

The Sui and Tang dynasties inherited the reform of the military system from the Northern Zhou Dynasty, and the military personnel were mainly people from Guanlong.

Li Yuan established twelve guards, and all the soldiers in these twelve guards were from good families in Guanlong.

In the early days of Li Tang's career, fighting in wars could earn merit and rewards, so there was naturally nothing wrong with this system, and the good families in Guanzhong also ensured the loyalty of the army.

However, this system gradually began to collapse with the expansion of Li Tang.

The soldiers in Guanzhong were responsible for wars across the country, from Goguryeo to Lingnan, from the grasslands to the Western Regions. While the Tang army, praised by frontier poets, was expanding the territory, how many tears did they bear for the families in the rear who were eagerly waiting for their sons and husbands to return?

The good families in Guanzhong began endless garrison and military campaigns. They were far away from home and even if they died in battle they did not receive the rewards they deserved. With the collapse of the equal-field system, the military service system finally disintegrated during the Wu Zetian era.

Although it is too early now, Su Ze is already trying to change.

Not only in Guanzhong, but in all the conquered areas, Su Ze vigorously implemented the system of military service and the system of granting land.

Today, the entire north has seen the collapse of order due to the Six Garrisons Uprising. This is the time when local powerful groups are at their weakest. This is the best time to implement these systems.

Su Ze released some of the soldiers from Guanzhong and recruited soldiers from Hengzhou and Youzhou to join the army in order to make the soldier system last longer and let the soldiers fight as close to their hometowns as possible.

The advantage of this is that more and better soldiers can be obtained, and the strength of various local factions can be balanced in the future, so as to avoid creating a monster like the Guanlong military aristocracy.

Su Ze said again:
"Erzhu Rong has already arrived in Jinyang. He is more anxious than I am. He ordered all troops to continue to reinforce Yanmen Pass and hold their ground."

Su Ze's response is also very simple. To borrow a famous saying from Shanxi, "Existence is everything, and everything is for existence."

The fact that Su Ze’s army could reach Yanmen Pass was the biggest deterrent to Erzhu Rong.

As long as this army was there, Erzhu Rong had to divide his troops to guard Jinyang.

Su Ze clearly realized that it was Erzhu Rong who was eager for a decisive battle.

Since Erzhu Rong was eager to fight, Su Ze was even less anxious. Yanmen Pass was a strategic pass in the world, and Erzhu Rong had just experienced the Battle of Yubi, so he certainly would not dare to continue attacking Yanmen Pass.

The strategic goal has been achieved. Su Ze patted Dugu Xin on the shoulder and said:

"Dugu Lang, do you have the confidence to defend Yanmen Pass?"

"Me? You, the Duke?"

"It doesn't matter whether I'm in Yanmen or not. As long as you have the confidence to defend Yanmen, I will return to Dingzhou."

Dugu Xin immediately understood what Su Ze meant.

After mobilizing Erzhu Rong's army back to Jinyang, Su Ze's next target would naturally be other areas.

Su Ze was not so arrogant as to engage in a cavalry decisive battle with Erzhu Rong in Erzhu Rong's lair.

When it comes to war, you have to play to your strengths and avoid your weaknesses.

It can only be said that Su Ze's tactics were truly inspired by Liu Bang, as Xiang Yu was heading for destruction amidst one victory after another.

Perhaps Su Ze's most elite troops could not defeat Erzhu Rong, but he had been using "inferior horses" and cities to contain Erzhu Rong's superior horses, while he himself took the superior and medium horses to deal with Erzhu Rong's inferior horses.

Dugu Xin said confidently:

"My Lord, as long as Yanmen Pass is there, I will be here. If Yanmen Pass falls, I will surrender the city!"

Su Ze pulled Dugu Xin and said, "Yuyao is pregnant now, I can't let her become a widow. I will wait until I meet my sworn brother Erzhu Rong before I leave."

(End of this chapter)