Chapter 111 Obtaining Deer!

Huolu!

This was a county under the jurisdiction of Zhending Prefecture. Although it had always been rich and vast in area, it was still just an ordinary county belonging to Hebei West Circuit.

But now, as the Song and Jin high commands, according to their own marching speeds, keenly realized that the two sides might meet hastily and a large-scale field battle might break out abruptly, they all noticed this area at the same time.

This coincidence, coupled with the name, could not help but give people a sense of destiny.

"When the Qin lost its deer, all the world chased after it…" Since Sima Qian wrote this sentence in *The Biography of Marquis Huaiyin*, the metaphor of the deer of the world has been deeply rooted in people's hearts. Even if one delves into it, the object of persuasion in this sentence, Han Xin, was precisely based in Hebei at that time, obtaining the foundation for chasing the deer.

Therefore, when this name was shouted out by the high commands of the two armies, it seemed to have a magical power, attracting the decision-making levels of both sides. Both sides realized that the gains and losses in this area would determine the ownership of Hebei, the ultimate success or failure of the Song army's Northern Expedition, and the basic fate of the two countries.

Of course, aside from the name, some things, especially the application of geography in military affairs, politics, and people's livelihoods, are truly clear-cut to the point of being predetermined, and there is essentially no coincidence… It's like if someone told Zhao Guan Jia that the area they valued was essentially the core urban area of Shijiazhuang, the capital of Hebei Province in later generations, he would definitely suddenly realize it.

The so-called Huolu County was originally the closest large plain to the Jingxing exit. However, because human activities and urban development had not yet reached the point of breaking through rivers like the Hutuo River, the capital of Zhending Prefecture stopped north of the Hutuo River, and Huolu, south of the Hutuo River, became a purely agricultural area.

But now, because the scale of the two armies was too large and a large plain nearby was needed, Huolu naturally emerged.

Similar geographical existences are countless throughout ancient and modern times, both in China and abroad.

For example, Zhuolu in the Zhangjiakou area to the north, the Stone City built by Sun Quan in the Nanjing area of later generations after long-term development in the south, and Constantinople located at the strait's mouth gradually replacing Lysimachia of ancient Greece as the capital of Thrace and even the entire Eastern Mediterranean after Rome unified the Mediterranean.

There are many coincidences in the world, but some are not coincidences at all.

On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, Yelü Mawu, having obtained permission from the rear, finally gave up his efforts in Jingxing and actively retreated… In fact, even if he did not retreat, he would not be able to hold on. There were too many Song troops, and the Jingxing passage was not an impregnable pass. The Song army was able to deploy enough troops to maintain alternating attacks.

But no matter what the reason, with Yelü Mawu's retreat, the vanguard of the Song army suddenly saw the light. Shao Yun, a major general of the Imperial Camp's Central Army, took the lead, leading his troops to follow Yelü Mawu and be the first to exit the Jingxing passage, arriving in Jingxing County, which was the true territory of Hebei West Circuit.

Following closely behind were the units of Niu Gao, Dong Xian, Zhang Qi, Zhai Chong, and Zhai Jin.

The next day, the twenty-fifth of the first month, the units of Jie Yuan, Huyan Tong, Dong Min, and Chen Jue of the Imperial Camp's Left Army also crossed the passage.

By the evening of this day, the Dangxiang light cavalry led by Li Shifu could not wait to skip the order and rush out of Jingxing ahead of the Song army's core main force, to carry out necessary reconnaissance and co-defense.

On the same day, the five vanguard units swept through the villages of Ganquan, Xiaozuokou, Wangjiagu, and Jiuxian, controlling the Jingxing exit area west of the Mianman River and south of the Hutuo River.

After obtaining the necessary safe area, on the twenty-sixth day of the first month, countless Song army units, led by countless flags, continuously crossed Jingxing and arrived in Hebei.

It is said that the Jin army only lost the main strongholds on the west side of the Mianman River, but there were still scattered sentries risking their lives to stay here for necessary reconnaissance. They hid in the remnants of the Taihang Mountains, using the many valleys and hills to spy from afar… At first, they tried to calculate the specific number of Song troops and identify the main generals of each unit, but soon they gave up this futile effort.

There was no way, there were too many Song troops, not only soldiers, but also countless laborers and supplies, making it impossible to count. Moreover, with the emergence of these Song army main forces, all the towns, valleys, plains, and hills west of the Mianman River were almost entirely controlled by the Song army, and most of these sentries lost their hiding places and could only choose to retreat.

However, even so, the Jin army sentries also spied on the most important intelligence before retreating—the dragon standard did appear on the eastern foot of the Taihang Mountains, arriving in Hebei.

In fact, this dragon standard had been advanced to the Xiaozuokou village west of the Mianman River before stopping, and this place was only a dozen miles away from the Mianman River.

Enough of idle talk, that night, the Song army high command hastily convened a military conference before the emperor to discuss the next steps in the military operation.

The military conference was presided over by none other than Wu Jie, who had just caught up with the main force yesterday, and the number of participants was not large. Below Zhao Guan Jia… except for Ma Kuo who was in the rear supervising the transportation of grain and grass, not present here… the rest were Lü Yihao with several academicians, Han Shizhong with several commanders, plus Yang Yizhong and Liu Yan, that was all. However, even so, those with the least qualifications, such as Yu Yunwen and Mei Li, could only stand at the narrow hall door to listen.

"Still Huolu!"

At the beginning of the military conference, under the lamplight, Wu Jie pointed to the simple map hanging on the screen with his horsewhip, and unhesitatingly gave the same answer as Han Shizhong had given before on the west side of Jingxing. "It can only be Huolu!"

"Why?!" The question was asked by Lü Yihao, who was obviously somewhat mentally exhausted but was trying to brace himself. After all, he was old, and military life was extremely destructive to health.

"To let the chancellor know, we are now at the Jingxing exit, west of the Mianman River and south of the Hutuo River…" Wu Jie continued to point to the map, speaking clearly and logically. "The Jin army's main force is clustered in Huolu south of the Hutuo River, facing us across the Mianman River. The main forces of both armies are huge and unmatched, accumulating strength against each other. At this time, we must not easily divide our troops."

"Not bad." Lü Yihao nodded in agreement after a moment's thought, stroking his beard.

"And next, our army is attacking, and the main force must either cross the Hutuo River to Zhending, or cross the Mianman River to Huolu… But where to go is not up to us, because according to the scouts' reports, the Jin army's main force has obviously already clustered and set up camp in the wilderness around Shiyi Town southeast of Huolu City. If we cross the Hutuo River, we don't need to cross completely. As long as we can cross forty or fifty thousand, they will immediately cross the Mianman River and take the opportunity to fight us decisively, or wait a little longer and try to block our retreat after we have mostly crossed the river!"

"Can't we use the terrain of the Mianman River to block the Jin army?" Fan Zongyin couldn't help but interject.

"We can't." Wu Jie's reply was decisive. "The Hutuo River is a big river, but the Mianman River is just a tributary, a small river. The difficulty for troops to travel to and from the Hutuo River is far greater than for troops to travel to and from the Mianman River! What's more, from our side, the section of the Hutuo River controlled by the royal army is too short, far less than the dozens of miles of the Mianman River, making it easier to travel back and forth."

Speaking of this, Wu Jie paused slightly, but looked at Zhao Guan Jia, who had been silent all along, because he knew that if Lü Yihao had no objections, then according to the current hasty state, it would basically be a matter of the Emperor's word: "Actually, to put it bluntly, with such a large army on both sides, no river can effectively block them. What can block hundreds of thousands of troops are only hundreds of thousands of troops! Moreover, the royal army's eastward expedition to Hebei this time is aimed at the Jin army's main force, and there is no reason to put the cart before the horse!"

As soon as these words came out, Lü Yihao and others, Han Shizhong, Li Yanxian, Wang Yan, Wang De, Li Qiong, Wu Lin, and Li Shifu, all turned their heads to look at Zhao Guan Jia sitting under the candlelight on the side.

Wu Jie understood that they, of course, also understood that in such a hasty war, it was often just a matter of Zhao Guan Jia's word.

"Well said." Zhao Jiu, who had listened to Han Shizhong, Li Yanxian, Wang Yan and others analyze it several times, nodded in agreement without hesitation. "We can only go to Huolu to meet the enemy! Besides, if we don't cross the Mianman River, we can't join up with Qu Duan's troops… But Jin Qing, if we engage in Huolu, do you have any arrangements?"

Wu Jie was silent for a while after hearing this question, and then replied seriously: "To let the Emperor know, this battle is almost three times the scale of the Yaoshan battle… If the Emperor asks about the marching arrangements, I can certainly list one, two, three, and four in the style of the *Dibao*, but they are all just armchair strategies based on experience… The real targeted arrangements will probably have to wait until we cross the Mianman River, get to the front line, and make temporary arrangements based on the terrain, the military situation, and the weather."

There was a slight commotion in the hall.

But Zhao Jiu's expression did not change at all, he just nodded: "It doesn't matter! We are like this, and the Jurchens are also like this. Whether it is hasty or inexperienced, it is the same… According to the military reports, the Jurchens arrived in Huolu only a day and a half earlier than we arrived in Jingxing County… You only need to say what needs to be done now."

Everyone was slightly relieved.

Wu Jie was also exceptionally straightforward: "Cross the Mianman River, take Jingxing County, and then send a large army to set up a large camp in the hilly area east of Jingxing County and west of Huolu County to set up defenses, then join up with Commander Qu's cavalry, and then advance forward, observing the enemy's situation along the way, probe and engage with the Jin army, and determine the strategy."

"Okay, let's do it this way."

Zhao Jiu spoke concisely and directly concluded the military conference before the emperor that day.

Since the first military conference had been held, Zhao Guan Jia personally issued an edict, and the army immediately made adjustments, spreading along the Mianman River, determined to cross this river and seize the cities of Jingxing and Pingshan, in order to establish a base and a camp.

The next morning, Zhao Guan Jia personally led the generals and the main force eastward to the Mianman River, personally supervising the battle and preparing to cross the river.

According to the military orders issued by Zhao Guan Jia based on Wu Jie's plan last night, as many as thirteen command units, led by their respective generals, crossed the river together this morning to carry out the necessary sweep.

Once the sweep was completed, the main force of the Song army would advance eastward in a big way, forcing their way into Huolu.

It is said that each of the thirteen commanders was a world-renowned general, and the combined forces, just the pure soldiers, reached a little less than thirty thousand. So many armored soldiers, so many famous generals, simultaneously crossing the river and attacking cities and seizing land on a wide front of dozens of miles… And not only were they crossing the Mianman River to the east to advance into the two counties of Jingxing and Pingshan, but even three commanders each led thousands of people across the Hutuo River to the north to capture the Bailing Village, the Xilin Mountain Village, and the Donglin Mountain Village (the Xibaipo area of later generations)… It was truly a matter of measured strategy, with a grand scale.

Such a military force, such an action, would almost be a battle that determined the fate of a small country, but the Song army, and even the Jin army on the opposite side, all knew that this was just a necessary action for the Song army to clear obstacles, create space, and prevent surprise attacks for the main force to advance.

It can only be said that the scale of the war was absurd to the point of being numb.

However, the Jin army was not to be outdone.

On the twenty-seventh day of the first month, at noon, the grass and trees were all green and full of life.

In front of the Mianman River, with its spring water babbling, Zhao Guan Jia's dragon standard swayed slightly in the spring breeze, and the Jingxing County on the opposite bank, under the valiant attack of Dong Xian's troops, who were becoming increasingly prominent in this Northern Expedition, was on the verge of collapse.

But at this moment, a rumbling sound like spring thunder came from far and near, becoming more and more obvious.

The Song army up and down, of course, knew what this was… the Jin army cavalry, and the Jin army had no reason to sit idly by as the Song army seized cities and established camps. They always had to take advantage of the Song army's unsteady foothold after crossing the river to fight a few battles to boost morale, which was an expected thing… Therefore, at first no one took it seriously, but military orders were passed down from before the Emperor, ordering the units of the Imperial Camp's Left Army, which were originally going to cross the river in order, to be prepared to cross the river at any time and echo Dong Xian.

However, as the thunder became louder and louder, exceeding everyone's experience and understanding, Dong Xian's troops on the opposite bank, from east to west, took the lead in entering a state of panic and loss of control, and finally even took the initiative to abandon the city that was within easy reach, clustering against the floating bridge… The Song army up and down finally noticed a trace of something was wrong.

Soon, there was no need for messengers from Dong Xian's troops to cross the river to report, the Song army high command under the dragon standard had already understood what was going on—they saw with their own eyes that countless Jin army armored cavalry, one man with two horses, like a tide, crossed the hills and small slopes on the opposite side, and the horizontal line of the advancing army stretched continuously, reaching as much as seven or eight miles wide, and was still lengthening and deepening.

Under the spring sunshine, the Jin army's armor and weapons shone brightly, and the flags were dense. Looking around, there were many famous teachers and generals of the Jin army, causing the Song army on the west bank of the river to change color one after another, and even show signs of wavering.

There was no way, there were too many Jin army cavalry, and this might even be the most unified gathering of Jin army cavalry in a single place since the Jingkang Incident. Although things were not what they used to be, the reputation of the Jin army's iron cavalry still shook and frightened people.

This can be seen from the reaction of Dong Xian's troops on the opposite bank.

Since this Northern Expedition, Dong Xian's troops had the most battlefield experience and the most outstanding military achievements. Dong Xian himself was also the commander who had accumulated the most merits in the Hedong area, otherwise he would not have been used as the vanguard of this expedition to Hebei. But even such a unit, the Jin army cavalry did not fight with them at all. They simply swarmed from the south side of Jingxing County, and lined up on the hillside a few miles away from them, showing off their might, showing off their war power, and had already been frightened to the point of wavering… Among Dong Xian's troops lined up with their backs to the river, there were many soldiers trying to throw down their formations and escape back to the west of the river along the floating bridge, but they were all beheaded.

It was precisely because of the strict military law that they barely held their ground.

Moreover, no one felt that there was anything wrong with this… If it were themselves and their subordinates on the opposite bank, they might not have reacted as well as Dong Xian's troops.

Even the Song army on this side of the river had already gradually become timid when the Jin army's iron cavalry advanced and deployed on a large scale, but the dragon standard stood still and no one dared to move.

Under the dragon standard, Zhao Jiu and Lü Yihao and the commanders were all silent, until the Jin army had completed its formation on the opposite hillside, and a five-colored sun-bearing flag and a 'Wei' character royal flag of the same specification appeared in the center of the opposite formation, and then there was a slight commotion.

"How many cavalry are there?"

Zhao Jiu, who was clutching the reins tightly to hide his nervousness, finally opened his mouth to ask the generals beside him, his expression unchanged. "Five or sixty thousand?"

"Thirty thousand!" Han Shizhong blurted out.

"Only thirty thousand?" Zhao Jiu was slightly surprised.

"To let the Emperor know, the cavalry is just deployed widely, it is only thirty thousand." Li Yanxian calmly explained from the side. "However, if thirty thousand iron cavalry are used in a concentrated manner, it is enough to make a final decision and determine the victory or defeat of a battle of two hundred thousand."

"But the Jin army cavalry should be more than thirty thousand, right?" Zhao Jiu thought for a moment, still confused. "According to the military reports, the two ten thousand households and four *hezhameng'an* from Yanjing have come to help. They should have six or seven hundred *mouke*, even if we don't count the Yanjing reinforcements, just say the iron cavalry that followed Wushu and Balisu when they withdrew from the south, plus the two ten thousand households from Datong, and the subordinates of Yelü Mawu, there should be at least fifty or sixty thousand."

"Emperor." Wu Jie, who had been observing the enemy formation with a telescope, suddenly reined in his horse and turned around, squeezing into the position between Zhao Guan Jia and Chancellor Lü. "Wushu and Balisu should just want us to think like this…"

Zhao Jiu was slightly stunned.

"Although the Jin army can have six hundred *mouke*, in reality, after more than three months of fighting, thousands of miles of traveling, countless losses and reductions, the army that has been following Wushu and Balisu, the ones with such power and neatness, I am afraid that there are only three hundred *mouke*!" Wu Jie calmly replied. "And if I am not mistaken, the Jin army reinforcements from the Yanjing direction should not have arrived yet. The original two ten thousand households from Datong north of the Hutuo River in Zhending Prefecture will not dare to easily cross the Hutuo River before our main force crosses this river, and Yelü Mawu has been beaten all the time and cannot be prepared so quickly. In other words… these three hundred *mouke* are already the limit that the Jin army can gather and line up at this time! And, eight or nine out of ten of them are false!"

Zhao Jiu was slightly enlightened.

"Emperor, please rest assured, even if the later reinforcements converge and the whole army is prepared, the Jin army cannot concentrate sixty thousand cavalry." Han Shizhong interjected again, but a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, and he sneered slightly. "Because the cavalry is meant to be used for rushing and sweeping, if you want to command them properly, like Lou Shi using five or six thousand troops per general, that is already the limit of a general, and if there are any more, you will have to separate out confidant deputy generals to assist… let alone five or sixty thousand cavalry? If I am not mistaken, when the final battle comes, the Jin will inevitably have to separate tens of thousands of troops and arrange them in advance according to the terrain, lining up in a majestic formation… Eight or nine out of ten of them will be infantry in the center, cavalry on both wings, and then Balisu will combine two or three proper ten thousand households, four or five proper *meng'an*, gather twenty thousand elite iron cavalry, to make a difference in victory or defeat!"

Zhao Jiu remembered the Yaoshan battle and nodded heavily, and the other officers also agreed.

"But what should we do in the current situation?" After slightly relaxing, Zhao Jiu asked immediately.

"Simple." Wu Jie replied seriously. "Please, Your Majesty, issue an edict to cross the river in advance!"

Zhao Jiu felt absurd in his heart, but after all, he had been tempered, and there was no sign of daze on his face, just silence.

"Not bad." Seeing this, Wu Jie urged in a deep voice. "Please, Your Majesty, do not hesitate… At this time, the Jin army must have heard that we are crossing the river and hastily gathered to show off their power. They have neither infantry to accompany them to line up and cooperate, nor enough military equipment and logistics arrangements, and they are also worried about the threat from Commander Qu and his troops on the flanks and rear. They simply cannot and do not want to compete with us fairly, let alone prepare for a decisive battle! And our floating bridges have been erected, and we have already made preparations for the entire army to cross the river. As long as we send elite troops to cross first to cover the entire army, the Jin army will inevitably be panicked and can only retreat under the force of several times the number of troops!"

Zhao Jiu stared blankly at Wu Da, then couldn't help but glance at the Jin army's iron cavalry covering the mountains and plains on the opposite bank, then looked back at the other party, but before Lü Yihao behind the other party was about to speak, he suddenly turned his head and ordered: "Yu Yunwen!"

"Your subject is here!" Yu Yunwen, who was extremely tall, immediately rode his horse forward.

"Are you afraid of death?" Zhao Jiu asked coldly.

"I am not afraid!" Yu Yunwen replied straightforwardly.

"Cross the river and persuade Wushu to surrender for Us!"

"Yes."

"Liangchen!" Zhao Jiu called out another person.

"Your subject is here." Han Shizhong cupped his hands.

"Your unit of more than 20,000 was originally going to cross the river. Now, you raise your own great standard and personally supervise your troops to cross the river from the downstream and join up with Dong Xian's troops! If the Jin army dares not retreat, you will give them a head-on blow!"

"Your subject accepts the order, please, Your Majesty, watch your subject defeat the enemy!" Han Shizhong still looked down on everyone, but he rode his horse and left with his great standard.

"Wang De." Zhao Jiu continued to look around, but stared at one person who was eager to try.

"Your subject is here." Wang De was overjoyed.

"You cross the river from the upstream."

"Yes."

"The rest of the entire army." Zhao Jiu looked back at everyone. "Be prepared, wait for the Prince of Yan'an and Vice Commander Wang to gain a foothold after crossing the river, Vice Commander Li (Li Shifu) will use cavalry to support the rear, and the rest of the central army will advance in order according to the previous plan to cross the river!"

The generals responded with a roar, and Wang De hurriedly left.

Not to mention the distribution of the Song army west of the river, just to say that after a while, on that hillside under the five-colored sun-bearing flag on the east side of the Mianman River, Wushu stood on his horse, Balisu stood beside him, and on the left and right were the ten thousand households and *meng'an* who had gathered hastily, and behind them were countless staff and guards, which was also a remarkable momentum.

However, this Great Jin Prince of Wei had just lined up and said a few words, and was even a little breathless, when he suddenly saw that the unparalleled great standard was leaving the dragon standard and heading north, and at the same time, another slightly smaller Wang character great flag was rapidly heading south. How could he not know who these were?

Han Shizhong and Wang Yecha.

So, he immediately felt a little uneasy.

But after a moment, the feeling of unease disappeared, because they already knew what the Song army was going to do… The Jin army high command watched as the vast and boundless Song army formation, which almost shocked them and made them dare not move, crossed the river without waiting for the two flags to reach their positions, and tens of thousands of Song army soldiers on both wings were eager to cross, but they were stunned and at a loss, and everyone looked at each other in dismay.

To be honest, the Song army was momentarily panicked when they saw the Jin army's cavalry formation, but the Jin army had come from afar, and when they saw hundreds of thousands of Song army main forces spread along the river for more than ten miles or even nearly twenty miles, and the formation was dense and solid, and their own army had left the infantry and the camp behind, with only a mere 30,000 cavalry coming from afar, how could they not be afraid?

Who was more afraid than whom?

"Marshal, what should we do?" Wushu suppressed the panic in his heart and turned to face Balisu, passing over the generals.

Balisu opened his mouth, but before he could speak, another scout rushed over and claimed that a Song army envoy, a direct scholar, Yu Yunwen, had arrived alone across the floating bridge and was coming to see the Prince of Wei on the orders of the Zhao Song Emperor.

"I'm afraid that Qu Duan has arrived and has made contact with the Zhao Song Emperor on the opposite side of the river!" Hearing this, Balisu blurted out, as if awakened. "That's why the Song army is resorting to all means to entangle us, so that Qu Duan can sneak attack our Shiyi camp!"

Wushu was stunned for a moment and continued to wait for Balisu to continue.

But Balisu was silent, just staring at Wushu… The latter was stunned again, then suddenly realized and immediately clapped his hands: "Yes! It must be so! Marshal, since our army has shown its power and frustrated the enemy, there is no need to stay any longer. According to my idea, we should return to the camp and be careful!"

Balisu thought for a moment, then slowly nodded: "Since it is Prince Wei's military order, we should follow it."

The generals below were relieved and returned to the formation to gather their troops and prepare to retreat.

Soon, the tactical maneuverability advantage of the cavalry was brought into play, and the Jin army units retreated one after another. Yu Yunwen didn't even have time to say a word, and was directly tied up and taken back to Shiyi as a prisoner.

A demonstration and confrontation ended in a whimper.

To be honest, Zhao Jiu, Wu Jie, Han Shizhong and the others did not expect the Jin army to retreat so decisively.

However, listening to the cheers of the Song army resounding through the wilderness, and seeing the Jin army withdrawing in large numbers, Wu Jie and Li Yanxian, the two commanders who had not reacted too fiercely when the Jin army arrived before, now changed their colors at the same time.

However, at this time the entire army was excited, and Zhao Guan Jia did not notice this.

In the afternoon, Jingxing opened its gates and surrendered. The elite troops of the Song army's Imperial Camp Left Army and Central Army had seized the high ground east of the river and lined up in the front, and the Dangxiang light cavalry of the Imperial Camp Cavalry Army had also successfully crossed the river, and then scattered in the hilly area where the mountains and plains converged on the east side of Jingxing County and the west side of Huolu County.

For a time, the east side of the Mianman River was safe.

Zhao Guan Jia finally led the dragon standard and set off, preparing to enter Jingxing City to settle down.

When Zhao Guan Jia rode his horse across the floating bridge, and most of the surrounding officers and close ministers were temporarily separated, Li Yanxian, the Commander of the Imperial Camp Central Army, suddenly rode his horse forward and took the opportunity to come to Zhao Guan Jia and said in a low voice: "Your Majesty, do not underestimate the Jin army because of today's events."

Zhao Jiu's expression did not change at all: "That is natural."

"Your Majesty does not understand what your subject means." Li Yanxian became more and more serious. "The Jin army's display of power is false and not worth worrying about, but when the Jin army retreated, no unit was scattered, and no unit left the main force to attack the Left and Right armies that had just crossed the river. This is the embodiment of the Jin army's combat power… In a big battle, executing military orders is the most important thing! From this, it can be seen that the Jin army's iron cavalry still has prestige and is enough to determine the victory or defeat in the battle. Do not underestimate them."

Zhao Jiu remembered what he had seen before, and finally changed his color, but it was only a slight change, and then returned to normal, and then nodded heavily.

Seeing that Zhao Guan Jia was awake, Li Yanxian did not say any more, but said goodbye, and then rode his horse to comfort Dong Xian's troops, his own subordinates who had worked hard in the previous battle.

As soon as Li Yanxian left, Wu Jie, who had just crossed the river, rode his horse over again: "Your Majesty."

"Are you going to talk about the Jin army's iron cavalry's strict military discipline?" Zhao Jiu asked calmly.

"Yes." Wu Jie was slightly stunned and immediately returned to normal. "But not only this matter."

"Your Majesty." Wu Da said seriously. "Your subject knows where the victory or defeat of this battle lies."

Zhao Jiu changed his color again, but then returned to normal again: "Tell me."

"The Jin army's iron cavalry has remarkable combat power and must be used in a concentrated manner. I am afraid that, as the Prince of Yan'an said before, Balisu will gather tens of thousands of elite cavalry to use as a trump card… When the battle is at its most intense, he will send out tens of thousands of iron cavalry at once to make a fatal blow." Wu Da said seriously. "Therefore, if our army wants to win, the only and inevitable move is to leave an elite force to suppress tens of thousands of iron cavalry as a reserve. When the enemy cavalry comes out in large numbers, we will also send this army out to determine the victory!"

Zhao Jiu did not move at all.

"The key lies in two points." Wu Jie made a calm summary. "We must draw up and build a large number of elite troops, and then let the Jin army send out their cavalry first in the battle, and then we will send out this army."

"Draw up elite troops?" Zhao Jiu finally opened his mouth.

"Yes."

"Long axes, heavy infantry, and strong crossbows to defeat the Jin army's iron cavalry? Just like you drew up *shenbi* bows from various units to form the garrison troops that day?"

"Yes."

"Drawing up is not difficult." Zhao Jiu finally said the key. "But who will be the general for concentrated use? These are all the lifeblood of the generals. And they must make the final blow, so they must have prestige and know how to fight bravely."

"That's what I want to say." Wu Jie glanced at Zhao Guan Jia's back and lowered his voice again. "According to the official rank system and military experience, it should be Wang Yan, Commander Wang, who should lead this army…"

"But Wang Yan is petty, and the various units in the army do not accept him, is that not so? And if you don't let him lead, then his name is not right and his words are not right, and it will still lead to disobedience, and even he will not accept it, is that not so?" Zhao Jiu asked calmly.

"Yes."

"What method do you have?"

"Your Majesty." Wu Jie sighed. "Since the Jianyan era, the Imperial Camp has been a general system, and the generals of each unit have their own attached guards… This is a helpless thing, but fortunately, Your Majesty has outstanding prestige, and if there is an imperial order, no one dares not to obey…"

"Us personally lead the army?" Zhao Jiu was extremely speechless. "I'm afraid we will be defeated."

"How can it be so?" Wu Jie helplessly revealed the answer. "Please, Your Majesty, send a confidant, a well-known close minister before the Emperor, to be Commander Wang's deputy general, but in reality, he will supervise this army with Commander Wang in battle… The generals will certainly obey."

"Just like Liu Yan on Yaoshan that day?" Zhao Jiu was slightly stunned, then nodded, but was still a little puzzled. "But for such a large-scale elite, I am afraid that Liu Yan is also a little insufficient, and if Liu Yan is not good, who else is there?"

Wu Jie raised his head and looked at Zhao Guan Jia, without saying a word.

Zhao Jiu was puzzled at first, but after a few breaths, he suddenly realized and looked back, and saw Yang Yizhong standing expressionlessly behind him, and then turned his head to look at Wu Jie again for confirmation.

Wu Jie was helpless and was about to nod… but at this moment, there was another sudden commotion in the direction of the floating bridge not far from the dragon standard.

Zhao Jiu, Wu Jie and others were puzzled, so they tacitly stopped the previous topic and looked together.

After a while, a loyal rider came in a sorry state: "Your Majesty, Chancellor Lü was riding a horse across the bridge, and stumbled for a moment, falling into the water, but fortunately he did not hurt his muscles or bones! Chancellor Lü asked this subject to inform Your Majesty, do not turn back to take care of him, and do not publicize this matter, so as not to delay the army's progress… Please, Your Majesty, quickly enter the city!"

Zhao Jiu completely changed his color, but this Zhao Song Emperor rotated twice on his horse under the dragon standard, and finally turned around and reined in his horse forward, heading towards Jingxing County with the silent Wu Jie and Yang Yizhong.

ps: Let me tell you something, I am very grateful to everyone for enthusiastically participating in the completion event, there are many great posts… But today is not about saying polite words, but to remind everyone that, according to the previous agreement, event posts sent before 515 will receive extra gifts, see the post sent by the book friend circle operator… I hope relevant big shots will pay attention.