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

Chapter 231: A Solitary Army Enters Deep and Risks

Half an hour later, the specific plan was put forward.

In general, those who have money will contribute money, those who have strength will contribute strength, pontoon bridges will be built, and grain boats will be provided. By the afternoon at the latest, all 3,000 Tianping soldiers and their baggage carts will be able to cross the river.

Kai Zhao felt unwell.

It turns out that neither Wanyan Zijin nor I have tapped into the potential of the wealthy families in Ju County!
Let alone anything else, where did all these canal boats come from? They are really good at hiding!
But Xin Qiji couldn't care less.

We have to cross the river quickly and pursue them. If we delay any longer, those two thousand highly mobile mule and horse corps will disappear into thin air!
Just after noon, the Tianping Army finally crossed the Xianggong River with the help of a simple pontoon bridge and grain boats. Without resting, they formed a marching formation, drove carts, and pursued to the southwest.

Not to mention that everyone in Ju County breathed a sigh of relief and began to lick the scars of the war.

Not to mention how anxious Xin Qiji was and how he didn't forget to send the cavalry, Wen Dunhunyu, who had just tricked Xin Qiji, was not having an easy time either.

"General, this is no use. We have to rest for a while. If we continue like this, the men may not be able to hold on, but the horses won't be able to."

After hearing the report from Lan Cheng, the leader of the marching committee, Wendun Hunyu's face darkened. "We've only marched forty miles, how can we rest? Follow my orders. March another ten miles and then find a place to set up camp."

Hui Lancheng did not dare to contradict the general's order and continued, "The army is running low on rations. The food we have with us is only enough for one meal tonight and two meals tomorrow. The horses and mules can still eat some grass, but there is nothing for the people."

Wen Dunhunyu frowned and said, "Hui Lancheng, what's wrong with you? When did you practice the Bodhisattva Sutra? If you don't have it, go and rob people! We've just had the autumn harvest, are you still afraid you won't have anything to eat? If you don't have food, steal cattle and sheep. If you don't have cattle and sheep, steal people to eat!"

Even though Hui Lancheng was a ruthless person, his face turned pale when he heard his boss say that.

Given the Jin Dynasty's poor grassroots governance capabilities, famine was common and people often exchanged their children for food.

But Hui Lancheng, as a low-level military officer, had milk, meat, rice and noodles, and he had never eaten anyone.

To be precise, even though the Jin Dynasty had become a ruined house, the Jin army, as the backbone of the ruling class, was still able to maintain regular food and fodder and was not mentally prepared to engage in large-scale cannibalism.

Hui Lancheng didn't know how his men would react when he told them about this.

Wen Dunhunyu ignored Lan Cheng's expression and continued, "I'll give you two Moukes. Go out and find food around here. Remember, you can't come back empty-handed!"

Hui Lancheng nodded, then rode away in an almost embarrassed manner.

Wen Dunhunyu sighed heavily.

With his intelligence, he certainly knew that his troops were tired.

The journey was more than a hundred miles long, with mountain roads and rivers to cross, and two large-scale battles in the middle that required the entire army to attack. How could one not be exhausted?
Especially now, even a fool knows that if Ju County is not captured, bypassing the fortified city and heading south is a typical case of a solitary army advancing deep into the enemy's territory.

If it was just Kai Zhao, it would be fine. That guy has no special skills and has been beaten badly, so he will definitely not do anything. But it would be different if the Tianping Army was involved.

This group of bandits was something Wen Dunhunyu had never seen before in his life.

You must know that the Loyal Army is still hiding in the camp as sandbags, and the Tianping Army actually dared to give up the advantage of terrain and fight in the field!

If this kind of army is not defeated or subdued, they will definitely catch up with us!
If the Wuxing Army suffered a slight setback at that time, it would probably lead to a major defeat.

There is nowhere to run between the Yishui and Shuhe rivers!
Wen Dunhunyu knew this truth, Pushandong knew it, Hui Lancheng knew it, and even the ordinary soldier Lazi knew it.

This will naturally and inevitably affect the morale of the army.

Therefore, Wendun Hunyu had no choice but to act inhumane and use military law to suppress others.

To be honest, if there were any other way, Wen Dunhunyu would not want to take such a risky approach.

But the deadline set by the emperor to defeat the bandits before September 10th hung like a sword over the Wuxing Army's head, making them shudder. If they failed to defeat the Loyal Army and recapture Linyi by then, thus significantly frustrating the Jin Kingdom's southern expedition, it was hard to say what would happen to the generals from the Dutong to the Xingjun Meng'an.

You must know that more than one old minister and more than one husband have died in the southern expedition. I heard recently that the empress dowager died because of this.

The official positions of Xingjun Wanhu and Xingjun Meng'an seem out of reach for ordinary people, but they mean nothing in front of those real nobles!
While I was thinking about this, another military envoy arrived.

"General, my captain asked me to tell you that there's a village at the foot of the mountain eight miles ahead that we've already occupied. It can accommodate our army. Do you want to set up camp?"

Wen Dunhunyu thought for a moment on his horse: "Tell Pu Sandong to use that village as a starting point and go five miles west. If there is no suitable village, set up camp in the village at the foot of the mountain. Also, tell him to hurry as far as possible today and get as close to the loyal bandit camp as possible, so that we can fight the bandits to the death tomorrow!"

"Order!"

The military envoy rode away, but Wen Dunhunyu stood by the road in a daze for a moment, not knowing what he was thinking, but finally shook his head and rode away.

No matter what, we must capture the Loyal Army camp tomorrow!

By the evening, the two thousand soldiers of the Wuxing Army finally arrived at a village and set up camp on the spot.

This place is about twenty miles away from the Loyal Army camp and about sixty miles away from Ju County.

The Tianping Army had to stop and set up camp after marching less than twenty miles. They didn't even have time to cut wood to build a camp. They could only use baggage carts to surround the area and dig some trenches.

Xin Qiji stood on the mound of earth from the trench, gazing at the surrounding terrain in the setting sun. Although still weighed with worry, it didn't stop him from striving to achieve the best possible tactical results. "Yelü Erlang, can the scouts still find any trace of the Jin thieves?"

Yelu Xingge, draped in a black cloak, didn't feel the heat. He nodded, but then shook his head again. "They didn't catch up, but the traces of two thousand men and horses marching can't be hidden. Wulang, they really are going all out, going after Liu Dalang."

"Have you informed Liu Dalang?"

Yelu Xingge nodded. "It's not just Liu Dalang. I've also sent messengers to the Duke of Wei. Alas... let's not talk about Liu Dalang being caught off guard tomorrow and getting crushed by attacks from both sides. Even if these two thousand gold thieves don't succeed tomorrow, and they start running rampant and causing trouble in this fertile land, how many civilians will have to die to stop them? It will all be our fault!"

Xin Qiji asked in surprise, "You, a Hu person, have actually begun to sympathize with the Han people?"

Yelu Xingge glanced at Xin Qiji and said, "I've had someone read you Han Chinese books to me recently, and I think there's some truth in what you Han Chinese say. Especially the line, 'If you treat me like a brother, I'll treat you like my confidant, but if you treat me like dirt and stone, I'll treat you like a slut.' It really hits the nail on the head."

This is probably why so many people died for Chief Geng and Duke Wei. Because they truly trusted these people."

Even though the situation was a bit tense, Xin Qiji still looked at Yelu Xingge with a bit of a helpless smile.

Where did these books of sages come from?
Yelu Xingge didn't pay attention to Xin Qiji's look. He hesitated for a moment before saying, "I know it's a bit inappropriate to say this now, but I want to grow my hair."

Xin Qiji looked at Yelu Xingge's bald head and was stunned for a long time before he said, "Grow it. In Han areas, it will be much more convenient to keep Han hair."

Yelu Xingge nodded silently.

Xin Qiji was silent for a moment as he watched the setting sun. He then gritted his teeth and said, "Tomorrow I intend to take everyone who can ride a horse, including those who ride mules. We will all march westward and pursue the Jin thieves!"

Yelu Xingge pondered for a moment and said, "Two thousand men is already the limit. You must have a spare horse for the armored cavalry. Eight hundred cavalry and twelve hundred infantry. If we fight the Jin bandits, it's really hard to say."

Xin Qiji gritted his teeth and said, "I will lead the army myself, leaving only one deputy general to lead the infantry and baggage on the journey. The rest who can come must come. We will fight the Jin bandits. It's a fifty-fifty chance, so we can take a gamble."

Yelu Xingge was silent for a long time. When the sun had completely set in the west, he gritted his teeth and said, "Damn it, you Han people have a saying, 'When a man dies, the birds turn to the sky.' Damn it!"

Xin Qiji nodded, too lazy to ask the other party where he had heard so many Chinese idioms.

(End of this chapter)