Autumn had arrived, but there seemed to be faint rumbles of thunder in the night sky. Duke Tong Guan stood on the city walls of Taiyuan, gazing at the mountains and rivers stretching into the north. His expression was solemn and quiet. Sparse lanterns spread across the plains into the distance.
This seventy-one-year-old man could be said to have spent his entire life on the battlefield. Although his body was incomplete, he was tall and burly. Even though he was past seventy, his back was not stooped and his aura had never weakened.
In the past ten years, ever since the ruthless and iron-fisted Qin Siyuan of the Blackwater Alliance retired from the Ministry of War, he had firmly grasped the entire military and political affairs of the Wu dynasty. He had participated in all of the major military and political affairs of the Wu dynasty in the past ten years. He had pacified La internally, subdued Yan Yun externally, kept Zhong Shidao in check, deterred Xixia, Dali, and so on.
Even when he retired from the Bureau of Military Affairs last year and Tan Zhen took over military affairs, in reality, his control over the army had not weakened. Due to the influence of Zhang Jue's incident, Tan Zhen had issued an edict of enlistment. Everyone was frantically absorbing the defeated Liao people's troops and forming a victorious army in the north. For peace of mind, in the second half of last year, Zhou Zhe once again used Tong Guan, sending him to Taiyuan to pacify Hedong and Yanyun. In reality, he hoped that Tong Guan's status as Duke would intimidate the north and intimidate the weak. Because of this, when news of the Jin invasion and the letter of challenge reached Taiyuan, this supreme officer north of the Yellow River knew of all this before the capital.
In the past few days, he frequently issued orders to resist. At the same time, he had people entertain the Jin messengers with the highest courtesy, seeking peace. Every night, he came to the city walls and looked north. When the wind blew, in the eyes of his attendants, this old man's figure was tall and imposing. Only in Tong Guan's heart could he understand what he was seeing.
Waves of blood were rolling in from the north.
At this moment, the battle had only broken out on the northern frontline. Although there were Yanmen Pass, high cities, and hundreds of thousands of soldiers on the road from the south to the north, only Tong Guan understood the significance of the Jurchen army that had swept across the north and swept through the entire Liao in a few years.
This time … it wasn't a joke …
Looking at the peaceful darkness under the night sky, he only felt his heart tremble.
Wanyan Zonghan had already arrived at the Yanmen Pass and Wanyan Zongwang should have already started fighting with the Victorious Army in Yanjing. Even though the news came slowly, he could roughly guess the situation. That night, he decided to return to the capital!
*****
In the north, the Gold Men's first wave of attack had met a tough opponent.
In the White Tide River, the intense battle had already lasted for ten hours.
The sky had already darkened, but the flames continued to burn, and the lines of blood spread. The entire Tidal White River was dyed scarlet, and the flaming arrows streaked across the sky without stopping. As the lights on the river dimmed, the corpses spread out, and some soldiers holding weapons stood up shakily from the pool of blood. Just eight or nine zhang away, the cavalry of the Female Daoist was like another torrent running parallel to the White River, roaring and killing. Someone noticed him, and behind him, the sound of movement had also spread over, and a forest of spears greeted the cavalry from behind.
Looking up into the sky, one could see countless battles taking place on both sides of the Tidal White River. Flames burned the forest, whistling in the wind. Troops carrying torches and mobilizing soldiers stretched out like a long dragon between the low ridges, giving off an indescribable sense of deterrence. Huge flags fluttered in the wind in the darkness.
Not many people had expected that after the fall of Liao, there would be such an evenly matched battle in front of the army of the Second Prince of the Jurchens, Wanyan Zongwang.
Noisy noises surrounded the surroundings. On the mountain ridge, Guo Yaoshi wore a cloak and rode on his warhorse, his eyes fixed on the entire battlefield. Occasionally, he would issue an order to send out reserve troops or make adjustments to the army formation to deal with the changes on the battlefield.
In this battle, the number of soldiers on both sides was between fifty to sixty thousand. In modern times, two thousand people could fill an entire field. If the number of soldiers was increased by fifty times, the ridges and riverbeds were densely packed with people. A great general could recognize his own form in this type of chaos, recognize the affiliation of every army, even predict how the battlefield would develop on the other side of the wilderness beyond his field of vision.
From noon on this day, when the battle began, Guo Yaoshi had already mobilized his forces to the peak. The front line stretched for several li, and after ten hours of fighting, the distance between the two sides had exceeded thirty li. Nearly ten thousand people had left their blood and lives on both sides of the riverbed. By now, it was difficult to see the outcome of the battle.
Unnoticed by others, Guo Yaoshi's entire body was trembling. As a starving man who begged for a living in Liaodong, he had become the leader of the starving people and the general of the resentful army. He had bowed and scraped under the command of the Liao people until he joined the Wu dynasty and formed the Ever-Victorious Army. At this moment, his entire life seemed to be burning.
He wanted to make a name for himself, to stand at the top of the world and compete with the heroes of the world. Once, when he was in the Liao, there was a person above him, Prince Xi Xiao Gan, the hero he once admired the most. But admiration between men didn't need to bow and scrape.
After the formation of the resentful army, there were endless rebellions. After Dong Xiaochou rebelled, Yelu Yujian suggested to Xiao Gan to kill the entire resentful army once and for all. It was Xiao Gan who objected, resulting in Guo Yaoshi and the others sparing their lives. But when Guo Yaoshi knelt in front of Xiao Gan to thank him, he didn't have such thoughts in his heart. He only wished that one day, his life wouldn't depend on the words of others. He wished to be friends or opponents with such a person on the same stage.
After he joined the Wu dynasty, he had such a chance. But when he failed to conquer Yanjing, Xiao Gan led his army back. At that time, Guo Yaoshi wanted to fight him head-on, but the Wu dynasty's army was routed, resulting in almost all of his brothers being wiped out. Xiao Gan easily crushed all resistance. If it weren't for his brothers pulling him away from the battlefield, he would have died there.
After that, he rebuilt the Ever-Victorious Army. Later, when his subordinates killed Xiao Gan, he didn't feel that kind of glory. This was because Liao was already an arrow at the end of its flight. The one he defeated wasn't Xiao Gan at his strongest, but Liao, who was beyond cure.
After that, he furiously expanded his army in Yanjing and trained his soldiers. Only at this moment did he know that he had finally reached the pinnacle. Because in front of the Ever-Victorious Army was the most famous general of the Adepts, who had destroyed Liao. He was the most powerful general of this era, and yet he was standing in front of him.
At the beginning of the battle, the Adepts' cavalry surged forward, intending to defeat the Ever-Victorious Army in one swift and fierce attack. Guo Yaoshi used his arrows and spears to form a tight defense by the Chaobai River. At the same time, his own cavalry pierced through the Adepts' rear defenses, not giving way at all. There was a moment when Guo Yaoshi wanted to personally lead his entire army and charge directly into Wanyan Zongwang's formation. He could see that Wanyan Zongwang was underestimating him.
If he really took this kind of decision, the outcome of this battle might be decided after both sides unleashed their fiercest attacks. However, Wanyan Zongwang was famous and this was the first real battle after the Ever-Victorious Army was completed. Guo Yaoshi didn't dare to take such a gamble.
At this time, the Adepts of the Adepts were indeed the strongest army in the world. After their fierce attack failed, the opponent quickly switched to an offensive and defensive formation, while the main formation retreated slightly. The Golden Men were best at using cavalry in field battles. In front of Guo Yaoshi, the opponent's cavalry rushed forward and killed like thousands of wild dragons. Guo Yaoshi also quickly organized his troops to cooperate. Using rivers, forests, flames, and arrows, the infantry and cavalry under his command constantly approached the opponent's formation, tearing everything into a crisscrossed mess.
Ten hours later, a fierce battle of more than 15 kilometers. The Golden Men's offensive changed from fierce to cautious, and now both sides were fighting steadily as if they were playing chess. Guo Yaoshi understood that he had at least won the opponent's respect.
No one in the world could underestimate him anymore.
*****
In Bianliang, amidst the flames, the situation in the north was marked on a huge map. The emperor and his ministers gathered together. Li Gang, Qin Siyuan, Wang Ci, Tan Zhen, Gao Qiu, Li Bangyan … and even the Grand Preceptor Cai Jing, who had already retired to his home, were all sitting in a corner of the room.
"In any case, the military strength of the two Jin armies is clear. They are coming south from the east and west. Although they are coming with great momentum, our defense is sufficient. On the west side, we have the Yanmen Pass and the Duke of Chu is at Taiyuan overseeing the overall situation. On the east side, according to the news from Yan Jing, Marshal Guo's Ever-Victorious Army should be fighting with Wanyan Zongwang. Given the strength of the Ever-Victorious Army, they won't be defeated so easily. I believe they will be able to defend Yan Jing. As long as Yan Jing is not lost, the three towns of Hebei will be unshakable … "
In the room, the one pointing at the map was Tan Zhen. After he spoke for a while, the emperor, Zhou Zhe, spoke, "Medicine Master Guo is our loyal subject and good general. He has trained troops for many years and will not disappoint us."
On the issue of using Medicine Master Guo, the emperor was the biggest driving force. In the past, Zhou Zhe had been the one to promote Medicine Master Guo. At this time, rather than saying he was certain, it was better to say he was emphasizing his foresight. No one dared to object.
After a while, Zhou Zhe said, "Minister Tong is overseeing Taiyuan. We also believe in him. However, there is one point. Although Minister Tong is now a duke, if he wants full authority to handle war matters, I'm afraid it is a bit unjustifiable. We want to give him an imperial edict so that he has a good reason to send troops. What do you all think?"
Tan Zhen immediately stood up. "I ask to resign from the position of Envoy of the Bureau of Military Affairs."
"Minister Tan, that's not what I'm talking about. I believe in you. Now that the Jins are coming aggressively, both you and the Duke of Chu have to do your best to command the troops. You can't hide at this time!"
"I'm not hiding from this matter." Tan Zhen hurriedly knelt. "It's just that as Your Majesty has said, it is unjustifiable if the position is unjustifiable. If it were any other time, I would be in command of the Bureau of Military Affairs and would be duty-bound to fight the Golden Men south. I would definitely sacrifice my life for them. However, the Duke of Chu has been in charge of the Bureau of Military Affairs for many years and is a man of war. At such a critical juncture, only the Duke of Chu can be trusted. Tan Zhen is willing to resign and give way. Your Majesty can bestow a deputy position to serve the country under the command of the Duke of Chu. "
"That's fine. But Minister Tan, We will say the ugly words first. If you take the official position, you must put in the effort that you should put in, not one bit less. As long as you work hard for the country, we can promise you that after this matter, the position of Envoy of the Bureau of Military Affairs will still be in your pocket, given Duke of Chu's advanced age. Remember this well. "
Zhou Zhe nodded. After a while, he looked at the map again and said, "It seems that the Victorious Army has already engaged the Female Zhenren. Minister Guo did not betray me, and I will not betray him. There is one matter that you must discuss. Today, We want to buy a bone with a thousand pieces of gold."
He paused and then said, "As long as the Victorious Army holds Yan Jing, We will give him the greatest reward. We will make him the Prince of Yan. The land north of Yanmen Pass will be given to him, and he will guard the north for Us for generations to come …"
Before he could finish speaking, Li Gang, Qin Siyuan, and several others had already rushed out. Even Tan Zhen, Qin Hui, and the others were shouting, "No!". Cai Jing raised an eyebrow. His muddle-headed gaze stealthily glanced at the emperor, revealing a look of pity.
In the palace, the Emperor suddenly waved his hand. "We have made up our mind to give him such a reward! All of you, have a good discussion. We will send out the imperial edict in a few days! "
*****
In the same night, by the White Tide River, the peak of Guo Yaoshi's life lasted for ten hours. There were changes on the side of the military formation.
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