Chapter 129 Snow

It was the twenty-ninth day of the twelfth lunar month, and it was snowing outside. Wu Jie was in the main military tent north of Taiyuan City, eating mutton soup with flatbread, while Zhao Jiu sat expressionlessly at the head of the table, watching him.

That's just how interesting things were.

This wasn't just about Zhao Guan Jia marveling at how everyone could bring him surprises and unexpected events. More importantly, he realized that within a complex system, someone who seemed to control everything actually had limited control... This feeling, which had begun in the autumn of the first year of Jianyan, seemed unchanged as the tenth year of Jianyan approached.

This had nothing to do with his prestige or his achievements because strange things were always at play between people. Changes in the external situation never seemed to bring about unified changes. Beneath a good, major change, there were always some bad effects, and behind some bad events, there always seemed to be acceptable reasons and processes.

Just as Zhao Jiu's thoughts were wandering, Wu Jie finished three bowls of mutton soup with flatbread, then stood up and respectfully thanked the Zhao Guan Jia... This expression of gratitude seemed pure and sincere because nothing was more comfortable than being able to eat and get warm after marching for days in the freezing winter, without having to report or think about anything else.

And the fact that he had been served hot food without being asked was something that only the Zhao Song Guan Jia, who was universally compared to Guangwu, would have thought of. In the past, not to mention Qu Duan, none of his superiors, not even Wu Jie's own old but young-at-heart father, would have been so considerate.

"How did Wu Qing arrive so quickly?"

Coming back to his senses, Zhao Jiu raised his hand to stop the other man's salute, and entered the topic expressionlessly, while also pointing to the table in front of the other man. "Take it away, and bring another bowl of soup."

"To let Guan Jia know, the main reason is that Wanyan Salihe has closed his city and will not come out." Wu Jie sat back in his original position as instructed by Guan Jia, and carefully replied. "Therefore, after I crossed the river from Wubao Stockade and induced the surrender of the Shizhou Prefecture's capital, Lishi's, garrison commander, I discovered that the road ahead was clear. So, I divided my troops, with 5,000 men each, under the supervision of Commander Guan Shigu, to hold the city of Loufan under Lanzhou in the north and the Shibon Stockade in the south. Then, I led only 5,000 elite soldiers and 15,000 Dangxiang auxiliary troops to cross the mountains lightly... As for my other subordinates, there is still a main force of 20,000 elite soldiers, led by Deputy Commander Guo Hao, who set off from the three prefectures outside the river, passed through Baode Army, and went to Shuozhou to put pressure on the southern route of Datong, while Yelu Yudu and Huer Zha Husi should leave Yinnei from Yinshan to put pressure on the northern route of Datong... In addition, my younger brother Wu Lin oversees the remaining troops of the Imperial Guards Rear Army and 30,000 Dangxiang auxiliary troops, and is in charge of the logistics of the Shaanxi and Ningxia circuits outside the river."

These were all things that had been planned, but the fact that Wanyan Salihe was afraid of war had become a very interesting breakthrough, allowing Wu Jie to calmly cross the undefended Jurchen defense zone to get here.

And sure enough, Zhao Jiu nodded, immediately stopped pursuing the matter, and continued to ask: "Although that's the case, why did you have to come so quickly? It must have been too hard, right?"

At this time, the mutton soup was brought up again, and Wu Jie took the opportunity to lean forward slightly at the table: "It is only natural for a subject and a general to serve the country and be loyal to the ruler."

Unexpectedly, faced with such a natural answer, Zhao Guan Jia fell silent. The originally empty tent became quiet for a while, and the originally appropriate exchange between the monarch and his subject suddenly stopped. For a time, only the noise outside the tent seemed particularly clear.

And this also made Wu Jie, who had always been tactful, feel a little uneasy... It had been five years since Yaoshan, and now the Northern Expedition had reached the city of Taiyuan. This Guan Jia's prestige was undoubtedly growing, so much so that no one in the world gradually had the qualifications to compete with him... No one thought that the Jin emperor or Yelu Dashi, or the remaining two ruling princes of the Jin, had the qualifications to sit on equal footing with this Guan Jia. This wasn't a matter of national strength, but rather that the Jin emperor, plus the two ruling princes, plus a group of Jurchen ten-thousand households, might have the weight of this Guan Jia's words.

After a long time, Zhao Guan Jia, who no one in the world was qualified to compete with, finally spoke, but first sighed: "Wu Qing, am I intimidating?"

Wu Jie didn't know what to do for a while, and didn't know how to respond. He could only scan the tent, but it turned out that there were no close officials in the tent at this time except for a few guards. The newly promoted and active iron-faced Shao Cheng Zhang wasn't there, and even Yang Yizhong wasn't there.

This made Wu Dutong even more nervous.

"Actually, I won't hide it from you." Seeing this, Zhao Jiu became even more emotional, and seemed to be expressing his apology or explaining. "Since the Northern Expedition, I have seemed to have everything planned out, and I have been able to do my best in everything, but inside, I have become increasingly anxious and restless, fearing that there will be a defeat somewhere, or that the logistics will be insufficient, so that I will be laughed at by the world... Therefore, my thoughts have gradually become complicated, and my heart has become suspicious... When I saw you coming so quickly today, my first reaction was that you, Wu Jinqing, were also like Han Liangchen, Li Shaoyan, and Qu Shiyi, afraid of not getting military merit, so you were reckless... This seems a little suspicious."

Wu Jie was stunned for a moment, but he was relieved instead: "Isn't it normal for Guan Jia to think this way? You must know that everyone in the world knows that this Northern Expedition is to determine the situation of the world, so who doesn't want to make an immortal contribution? And how can we, as subjects, withstand the prodding and encouragement of our subordinates even if we don't have such thoughts ourselves?"

"Yes." Zhao Jiu looked thoughtful. "Like Qu Duan before, he knew he couldn't succeed, but he was still half-pushed and half-coerced by his subordinates to come and ask for a battle, so I had to give him a whip to give the Imperial Guards Cavalry something to answer."

Wu Jie hesitated after hearing this, but after taking a look at the Guan Jia in front of him, he still carefully said: "It's okay to say about others, but I, as a subject, know Qu Dutong's roots... He used to pride himself on being a genius in the world, but he almost fell into eternal doom. He was able to escape only because Guan Jia was magnanimous and shouldn't have violated Guan Jia's wishes again, but there was really something to be said about the Imperial Guards Cavalry..."

"I know." Zhao Jiu leaned to the side in his seat and supported his forehead. "The Imperial Guards Cavalry was formed in a hurry, and its sources are complicated. Although he is Dutong and Jiedu, the merits of Deputy Dutong Li Shifu are also extremely high and stable. The world knows his father and son are loyal and brave, but he is only ranked as Deputy Dutong due to his age and background... What's even more fatal is that the number of Dangxiang light cavalry he leads accounts for almost half of the cavalry. In terms of battlefield qualifications, the Dangxiang light cavalry is even slightly better than the newly formed heavy cavalry... The remaining half of the newly formed heavy cavalry is divided into two again, and there is also Liu Qi leading the Tubo [Tibetan] barbarian cavalry and the Xihe Army, occupying half of the country... It's absurd to say that these people don't listen to Qu Duan's command, but it's actually unlikely that Qu Duan can properly subdue them... And how can he withstand it if those direct descendants he relies on, such as the Zhang brothers, and Xiahou Yuan and others, have a heart for meritorious service? Therefore, he can only bite the bullet and eat a whip from me to give his confidants an explanation."

What kind of person was Wu Da?

This person was probably the most suave among the marshals, but that didn't mean he didn't have decisiveness and courage. Otherwise, he wouldn't have gritted his teeth and properly tied up Qu Duan and handed him over to Hu Yin and Wan Qixie that day. Or rather, the reason why he seemed so suave later was多少 because he had once been ordered to tie up his superior, so he was reluctant to show his sharp side easily.

However, these are all old stories. It's just that the relationship between Wu Da and Zhao Guan Jia was actually very interesting... Compared to Han Shizhong, Zhang Jun, Zhang Rong, Yue Fei, and even Qu Duan, Wu Da, as one of the marshals of the Imperial Guards, always lacked a bit of characteristic 'anecdotes' with Zhao Guan Jia.

That's right, like those things about rebelling at night and entering the camp instead of leaving, or whipping people in public, etc.

Wu Da himself was recommended by Hu Yin to replace Qu Duan, and he leaped up to become a great general. Then, he stabilized his position by relying on his talents and ability to deal with people. Finally, he shone brightly in Yaoshan, and became known to the world as a marshal... There was a lack of personal bonds with Zhao Guan Jia.

And in a sense, Wu Da also wanted to have a heart-to-heart talk with Guan Jia and establish some personal relationships. He wasn't just suave and appropriate to his colleagues.

Therefore, when Zhao Guan Jia babbled for a while, this Imperial Guards Rear Army Dutong immediately realized that this was an opportunity... He believed that the other marshals must be as keenly aware as he was of Zhao Guan Jia's pre-war nervousness and suspicion, because this was indeed very normal, and it was difficult to hide it from those shrewd marshals, or even close officials.

But it was clear that his arrival was well-timed. Only he, Wu Da, had encountered the opportunity for this Guan Jia to try to confide in him.

"To let Guan Jia know, I heard about Qu Dutong being whipped on the road."

While his mind was racing, Wu Da directly picked up on Zhao Guan Jia's words. "But according to my subordinates, everyone has their own difficulties and thoughts. Qu Dutong was being held up by his subordinates, but didn't he also have the intention to test the waters? But what does it matter? Who doesn't have their own little thoughts? Who dares to say that they are selfless?"

Zhao Jiu was slightly stunned.

"For example, Han Jun Wang, he has reached the pinnacle of martial artists in this dynasty. At this time, he is only fighting for merit so that he can protect his position as the first in meritorious service. It's said that he just wants to fight comfortably, so he jumped over Hezhong Prefecture with all his might, but he really doesn't care about his subordinates." Wu Jie seemed to not see Zhao Guan Jia's strange gaze, and directly talked eloquently. "But like Li Jiedu, he competed for merit at Tieling Pass before, first, because he had been working hard in Shanzhou for eight years, and he was really aggrieved. Second, it was because most of his troops were from Shanxi and Luoyang, and the army was mixed, so he wanted to rectify the name of his subordinates... As for Ma Zongguan, Ma Zongguan seems to not compete, and he can't compete, but that's because what he wants to compete for is not his own achievements, but that his subordinates can get some results after this battle, so not competing is competing for his subordinates."

At this point, Wu Jie saw that Zhao Guan Jia didn't mean to stop him, so he continued to talk non-stop: "However, even these three, and Qu Dutong, although they all have the heart to compete for merit and rectify their names, when they meet Guan Jia, they can all stop when they hear their mistakes, restrain their thoughts, and turn to strictly enforce orders and prohibitions. So what if they have some selfish motives?"

"Wu Qing." Zhao Jiu finally smiled. "You are trying to comfort me in a roundabout way, saying that I am like the four of them. Although I am also worried about gains and losses before the battle, and I am a little anxious and suspicious, I have never made a mistake. So what if I have some thoughts... Is that right or not?"

"Your Majesty is wise." Wu Jie got up and bowed in response, and at this time, the bowl of soup in front of him was no longer hot.

"Thank you for your kindness, Wu Qing." Zhao Jiu shook his head repeatedly, his smile undiminished. "But Wu Qing, I'm really different from them..."

Wu Jie didn't know what he was thinking, but on the surface, he immediately became solemn: "I know Guan Jia's difficulties, which are ten thousand times more troublesome than those of us officials... The overall situation of the world, north, south, west, and east, is all in Guan Jia's consideration, while we only need to take care of what's in front of us. How can they be the same thing?"

"The logistics are being consumed too quickly." Zhao Jiu shook his head even more. "The armor and routine military supplies are sufficient, but the imperial court has prepared for things like food, carts, horses, and clothing, roughly based on the consumption of 300,000 soldiers and 500,000 civilians per year, but there are too many variables... The consumption of civilians is coming too quickly than expected, and suddenly there are hundreds of thousands more refugees in Hebei, and then Yue Pengju suddenly wants to set up dozens of miles of large stockades in Daming Prefecture. These all require a constant flow of logistics... The same is true in Hedong. In addition to the original quota, there are only a few tens of thousands more people, but the consumption before and after has increased exponentially. Also, Ma Kuo's troops are more than expected. Plus, you've come this time, and there are Dangxiang people behind you, as well as Khitan and Mongolian reinforcements, all of whom have to be paid for by our money and food. Even so, I don't know if we can stop them from taking the opportunity to loot the local area... It's really too difficult, and I'm really worried."

Without temporarily counting the losses and reductions since the start of the war, only saying that the Imperial Guards had 300,000 soldiers, Hebei had 90,000, and Hedong had 210,000. Now, the Khitan reinforcements of 15,000 and the Western Mongolian reinforcements of 20,000 had to be counted. At the beginning, there were 500,000 civilians, but now, according to Zhao Guan Jia, there were probably no less than 600,000 to 700,000. In addition, there were 50,000 to 60,000 Dangxiang auxiliary troops whose consumption was greater than that of civilians but less than that of soldiers... Wu Jie didn't need to calculate, and he could probably tell in his heart that Zhao Guan Jia's statement wasn't an exaggeration.

After all, no one had tried preparing for a war of this scale... The five-way expedition to Xia before was one time, but that time, the logistics collapsed after half of the battle. Wu Da was actually quite familiar with this matter.

At the thought of this, Wu Jie also became completely serious: "May I ask Guan Jia, in that case, how much support is there left in terms of food?"

"I can't give you an exact number for how much there is specifically, but the previous consumption was 50% more than originally expected. As soon as your Imperial Guards Rear Army and the northern reinforcements move, it will almost double." Zhao Jiu gave a very terrifying and direct result.

"That is to say, what was originally a year is now estimated to be only a little more than half a year." Wu Jie calculated slightly in his heart and almost blurted out. "The war has been going on for almost three months... Before the Cold Food Festival next year, we must stop the war?"

"Probably!" Zhao Jiu sighed in his seat. "At that time, even if there are still soldiers and some money and food, we will have to stop the war and save our strength... Otherwise, without the Jurchens, the Mongols and Goryeo people will cause us big trouble. Sometimes I really don't understand, why can the Jurchens and Mongols hold on?"

Because they are not a righteous army, because they signed contracts with Han Chinese who are used and thrown away, because they are fighting on the inner line, because they carry herds of livestock with them, and they can drink goat's milk and cow's milk. Can they be the same?

Wu Jie was speechless in his heart, and didn't say these words out loud. Instead, he skipped over them and continued to ask: "Then may I ask Guan Jia... Is this why Guan Jia wants to quickly break through Taiyuan City?"

"Yes." Zhao Jiu nodded in response. "If we can quickly break through Taiyuan City, we may be able to take advantage of the spring to launch a decisive battle in Hebei to seek complete success."

"But there is a word that I must say since I have arrived... I have been to Taiyuan City before, and this city looks small, but it has almost no flaws in military terms... Especially since the Fen River is about to thaw." Wu Jie sincerely cupped his hands and said. "Guan Jia, haste makes waste."

"I know." Zhao Jiu nodded again, but suddenly changed the topic. "Jinqing... you just said half a day about the selfish motives of other marshals, and you also half-heartedly admitted that you have selfish motives, but you haven't said what your selfish motives are... You came so quickly this time, partly because you heard some rumors that I was preparing to do the Yaoshan story and entrust you with the overall strategy of the Hedong battle situation, so you couldn't wait to come, right?"

Wu Jie looked slightly embarrassed, but he knew that there was no point in concealing anything in front of this Guan Jia.

So, he paused slightly and bowed his head in admission: "I am ashamed."

"It's okay." Zhao Jiu sighed again, then finally stood up and walked out with his hands behind his back. "I do have this intention. I have also revealed some of the bottom line to Han Liangchen and Li Yanxian. Wu Qing can also make appropriate preparations... However, before that, I have a promise with Yue Pengju to try to break through the city together tomorrow... Therefore, you have to make two preparations, preparations for overall planning after the city is broken, or preparations for overall planning if the city is not broken, because no matter which one it is, after tomorrow, I will entrust the overall situation here to you, still like the Yaoshan story, and you will be in charge of the overall planning, and I will also relax appropriately."

Wu Jie was stunned for a moment, not knowing whether to thank him, lose his composure, or be at a loss.

And after Zhao Guan Jia finished speaking, he directly lifted the curtain of the big tent, but saw that it was actually quite bright outside. It turned out that during the conversation between the monarch and his subject in the tent, although the snowflakes had not been large, they had been falling continuously, and unknowingly, they had already covered Jianyan Year Nine with a slight white color.

ps: Thanks to the new leader, sjhunter.