The red sun in the evening turned into a sky full of stars and the rosy clouds in the daytime.
The news of the victory at Wangyuan Bridge in the southwest and Zong Han's army fleeing in panic had spread throughout Jiangnan and the Central Plains in April.
The battle that could determine the direction of the world had now shown a direction that did not match most people's expectations. The strength and tenacity of the Huaxia army stunned many people. Some people were shocked, some were frightened, some were excited by the results, and some were vigilant. But no matter what kind of attitude and mood they had, as long as they had the slightest qualification to dance on this stage of the world, no one could remain indifferent towards them. This was something that could not be refuted.
Even though they were thousands of miles apart, the two troops on Liangshan were excited. Bandits came to join them from all directions. There were even two small-scale conflicts and fights between the Hua Xia army led by Zhu Biao and Liu Chengzong and the Guangwu army led by Wang Shanyue and Xue Changgong because of this great victory, which made people not know whether to laugh or cry.
Far away in Baoding, Wanyan Chang, because of the restlessness on Liangshan, had strengthened the defense of the Central Plains. He was on guard against these people in the Shandong region who were encouraged by the situation in the southwest and took the risk to stir up some big trouble.
Further away, inside the Jin Kingdom, a large-scale impact was gradually brewing. In Yunzhong, after the first round of news spread, it was not made public. It was only quietly spread among some of the Jin Kingdom's nobles. After learning of the defeat of the Western Army, some of the founding families of the Jin Kingdom dragged out their Han slaves and killed some of them. Then they went to the yamen to pay the fine.
It would take more time for the tragic news of the retreat of the Western Army to come from the southwest thousands of miles away. At that time, a huge wave would appear inside the Jin Kingdom.
In the Land of Jin.
The team of horses passed through undulating hills and turned towards a small basin on the side of the mountain. Lou Shuwan lifted the curtain in the middle carriage and saw faint black smoke and flames below.
The flames ravaged the villages and wheat fields. The nearby army had come to salvage what could be salvaged in the messy place. The closer the team of horses got, the clearer the crying in the wind became.
"… Bastard."
She clenched her fists and cursed.
This was a scene in March.
If not for what happened in this spring, Lou Shuwan might have been more encouraged by the information about the war in the southwest. But at this moment, the Land of Jin was troubled by the sudden attack and was badly battered.
The winter snow melted in the second month of the lunar calendar. The battle between Lou Shuwan and Liao Yiren began again. This time, Liao Yiren's reinforcements had suddenly appeared and used various methods to uproot two counties and towns on Lou Shuwan's side. The other party was cruel and had killed many people. After some investigation, Liao Yiren's side confirmed that the people who had participated in the attack were probably the prairie people who had killed their way here from Western Xia.
This new group of mercenaries was flexible in combat, and they had a strong desire for battle and slaughter. They had broken into the city twice by pretending to be merchants and contacting the guards in the city. After getting permission, they had seized the city gate with a small number of elites, and then started a massacre and burning of the city. Just from the battle of seizing the city gates, it could be confirmed that this group was indeed an elite force that could not be underestimated.
Lou Shuwan, Yu Yulin, and the others were already on their guard when they took over the city in February. By the end of February, the other party's operations were hindered. After they were seen through once, at the beginning of March, the troops ambushed the patrols, passed on false information, and attacked two small towns in succession. At the same time, they also launched even more inhumane attacks on the civilians under the Tiger King's jurisdiction.
Small groups of horses and elite hunters with nimble combat power penetrated the villages and attacked the villages under the cover of the night. Most importantly, they burned the houses and burned the wheat fields. In previous battles, even Liao Yiren would not dare to use such a battle strategy. However, in these three months, they had encountered more than ten such insane attacks.
Winter wheat was usually planted in the eighth or ninth month of the lunar calendar and harvested in the fifth month of the following year. To Lou Shuwan, this was the most crucial harvest for the revival of Jin. Liao Yiren was also a local big clan. They fought to the death on the battlefield, but they always hoped that they would be able to live a good life after defeating the other party. No one would set fire to the civilians' wheat fields. However, the arrival of the prairie people was the first to do so.
In February or March, Yu Yulin gathered the troops and recovered two more towns. However, the periphery of the army near the plains was also attacked by the prairie people. They attacked the weaker troops by using their excellent skills in firing in unison. After one round of firing, they turned and ran, and then another round of firing after increasing the distance. They only attacked the soft persimmons, not the hard ones. This caused a certain degree of trouble for Yu Yulin.
As a general who had led troops for many years, Yu Yulin and many others could see that the prairie people's combat strength was not weak. They were just used to using such a battle strategy. Perhaps because the survival of Jin had nothing to do with them, they kept stabbing everyone's weak spots when Liao Yiren invited them over. For them, this was a relatively easy battle, but for Yu Yulin, Lou Shuwan, and the others, there was only resentment.
The only thing that could comfort them was that Liao Yiren's forces were no match for Yu Yulin's attack on the battlefield. However, the other side was on the defensive. Even if everything went smoothly, it would take nearly half a year to defeat Liao Yiren and recover the entire Jin. However, no one knew how many crazy things these grassland people would do in half a year. It was also hard to be sure what would happen if these people were determined to launch an attack in Jin.
During the friction and investigation after the two sides came into contact, the situation in the southwest was transmitted one by one. Zhan Wu, who was in charge of the affairs here, reminded Lou Shuwan. Although not many people paid attention to the situation in Western Xia and other places after the northwest was turned into a white land, Mister Ning had once led people to Western Xia to investigate the movements of these prairie people before he came to Jin.
A force that would make Ning Yi secretly pay attention to it was in itself a signal and hint. Lou Shuwan also paid more attention to it because of this. She asked Zhan Wu about Ning Yi's opinion of this group of people and whether he had any countermeasures or backup plans. Zhan Wu was a little troubled.
"… when Mister Ning came, he only arranged for Tiger King's matter. Perhaps he didn't expect that this group of people would extend their hands to the Central Plains. He didn't mention his experience in Western Xia to anyone …"
Lou Shu Wan was in a gloomy mood. When she heard this reply, her brows furrowed fiercely. "Scram, you Black Flag Army are the same as that Ning Yi. Feeding you with good food and drink is completely useless!"
Whenever she encountered something related to Ning Yi, she would scold him. Sometimes, she was extremely vulgar. Zhan Wu was also helpless. Especially after they received help from the other side last year, the Hua Xia Army was soft-spoken in front of her and could only leave with their tails between their legs. What was face? It didn't matter anymore.
Ning Yi didn't know what the prairie people thought. Zhan Wu could only write a letter at the last minute and report the situation here. On the other hand, Lou Shuwan gathered Yu Yulin and the others. She asked them to be vigilant and prepare for a tough battle. As for Liao Yiren, they tried their best to deal with him as quickly as possible. Although the prairie people's tactics were slick for the time being, they must have the psychological expectation of fighting a tough battle with the other party. All the methods to check and balance the other party's guerrilla tactics had to be done now.
Therefore, they retracted their fists. The scheduled time of the battle against the Liao Clan as a whole was also postponed to April. During this period, Lou Shuwan and the others launched a conservative defense outside the territory. However, the scene of the villages being attacked would still be reported to them from time to time.
Every burned wheat field and village was like a knife stabbing Lou Shuwan's heart. Under such circumstances, she even led her subordinates and personal guards to press the center of administration toward the frontline. There was still some time to prepare for the attack. In private, persuading Liao Yiren to surrender and lobbying were also carried out in full swing. The flames of war in the land of Jin were surging. At the beginning of April, the atmosphere was somber. Because people suddenly found that the prairie people's harassment had stopped at the end of March for some unknown reason.
A long period of silence might be the preparation for the next round of attack. Realizing this, Lou Shuwan ordered the army to be more vigilant. At the same time, she asked the people at the frontline to inquire about the news. Not long after, a very strange news came from the army of the Liao Clan …
…
North of Fenyang, Hui County, where Liao Yiren's ancestral home was located, the chaos still continued.
The prairie people suddenly launched an attack.
It happened on the evening of March 28. A banquet hosted by the Liao Clan was held in this big house. Not long after, the Mongolian cavalry launched an attack on the nearby military camp. They captured the general of the army and seized the commanding heights of the inner court of the Liao Clan. After that, the Mongolians controlled the Liao Clan for four days. Because of the previous arrangements, the nearby military equipment was looted. A large number of prairie people came and took away the gunpowder, iron cannons, and ammunition that they valued the most.
Although it seemed to be premeditated, the Mongolians still showed a lot of haste in the whole operation. At that time, it was hard to determine why they chose this time to attack the Liao Clan. But no matter what, in the next four days, all kinds of inhumane things happened in the Liao Clan's big house. Liao Yiren was not dead at that time, so no one sympathized with him. But in the first half of April, he and some of the Liao Clan were missing for a while. Because the Liao Clan's power was in chaos, no one paid attention to where the Mongolians went after the Liao Clan's robbery.
On the second of April, the Mongolian cavalry left the Liao Clan. The nearby military camp was massacred. On the third, the first batch of people who came found the Liao Clan's ground covered with corpses. From the fifth, people gradually conveyed the idea of surrender to Lou Shuwan's side. At that time, people were still in chaos. They did not understand why all this happened, and they still could not see how it would affect the situation in the future. Where did the Mongolians go? The conscious investigation only began after the fifth day of the New Year, and the shocking results came only after the tenth day.
Many years later, people were able to sort out the general outline of what happened in Jindi from the mouths of the survivors.
No one knew that on the afternoon of the 27th of March, two Mongolian generals, Jamuka and Tsarawun, were discussing something in a room in Jindi. What startled them was a bird flying by, or a member of the Liao Clan who happened to be passing by. But in any case, the order to prepare for action was sent out not long after.
In the three months since they arrived in Jindi, the Mongolians had been fighting and learning about the situation in the world. By this time, they knew that there was an even more powerful enemy in the southwest that had defeated Wanyan Zonghan. Jamuka and Tsarawun were discussing what they were going to do next. Things were brought forward because of the movements outside.
On the second of April, the Mongolian army led a group of Liao Clan members to the north. They had already interrogated them and obtained enough information. The key to the operation was the few stewards and direct relatives who had been involved in the Liao Clan's business. On the seventh of April, a caravan carrying the Liao Clan's flag arrived at the northernmost point of the Central Plains … Yanmen Pass.
After the Jurchens took control of Yanmen Pass, they essentially controlled the Central Plains. Due to the decline of the Central Plains, there were not many merchants coming and going from both sides, but there were always some. The Liao Clan was one of the forces that had the right to trade with the Central Plains. Moreover, after Lou Shuwan, Yu Yulin, and the others launched a resolute resistance against them, the Liao Clan's status among the local warlords was very high.
This was a large caravan of more than two hundred people, and they carried a lot of goods, which also meant that the army stationed at the pass would have more money. Therefore, the two sides engaged in friendly negotiations. The Jurchens at the pass made things difficult for the Liao Clan, and the leader of the Liao Clan could not wait to throw out a lot of treasures to bribe the other side. This kind of eagerness was not normal, but the Jurchens guarding Yanmen Pass had been immersed in the filial piety of all sides for a long time and did not notice anything unusual.
More than two hundred people entered through the gates of Yanmen Pass. Among these two hundred people, there were many Mongolians who would make a name for themselves in the future. They were: Jamuka, Tchilawun, Muqali, Jebe, Borchu, Tolui, Hesar, and Temujin Temujin.
More cavaliers were waiting quietly in the mountain ridge to the south of Yanmen Pass.
This was the moment when the Jurchens' rear defense was weak.
The fierce tiger bared its fangs. Not long after, the Mongolian army passed through the sixteen prefectures of Yan and Yun and reached Yunzhong …
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