Chapter 399: Gaoli

"Your Highness, this is the situation regarding the troops each of the Shizu clans has dispatched for this campaign against Xiliang."

After giving instructions to Wang Chong regarding the training of soldiers, Zhao Xu returned to the Prince's Mansion.

Upon arriving at the gate of the Prince's Mansion, he ran into Xu Ke, who was coming to see him.

"The Imperial Court is sending two hundred thousand troops, the Dou Family one hundred thousand, the Xiao Family one hundred thousand, the Wang Family sixty thousand, and the Han Family eighty thousand." Zhao Xu took the paper from Xu Ke's hand and read it aloud.

Although this campaign against Xiliang was imperative.

The Shizu clans were still arguing endlessly in the Imperial Court over how many troops each family should contribute.

It was estimated that this figure was the final result of their power struggle.

"Over five hundred thousand troops, and that's not even counting the Ma Family's or my own; it's truly a meat grinder." Zhao Xu could not help but shake his head.

This scale was catching up to the Battle of Changping between the Qin and Zhao states of that era.

And this did not even include the Ma Family's or his own forces.

As for Ma Han, he was determined to go all out this time.

After all, Qinzhou and Yongzhou had to be reclaimed.

As for himself, he needed to assess the situation; according to intelligence sent from Wuan County, the Black Iron Royal Tent was attacking the Lengbao with increasing frequency.

At the same time, at Yanguan, the Beidi scouts were becoming increasingly arrogant, with both the frequency and the number of people showing an upward trend.

If the Beidi pinned him down at Yanguan, he would still have to keep some troops to guard Yanzhou.

After all, the Beidi now possessed Artillery, and one careless mistake could easily lead to trouble.

However, even so, he could still mobilize one hundred thousand men.

Thus, the total number of Da Song troops gathered in the northwest of Da Song would reach over seven hundred thousand.

Although this number was large, it did not surprise Zhao Xu much.

After all, during the Sui Dynasty of that era, they mobilized a million troops to campaign against Goguryeo.

During the Southern Song period, the Jin Dynasty Emperor Wanyan Liang once mobilized six hundred thousand troops and conscripted five hundred and sixty thousand Warhorses to launch a full-scale war against the Southern Song.

More recently, at the end of the Ming Dynasty, during the Battle of Sarhu, the Ming army mobilized four or five hundred thousand troops to campaign against the Jurchen.

Now, with Da Song suffering such national humiliation, it was not hard to understand the gathering of over seven hundred thousand troops.

However, he was highly skeptical about the actual combat effectiveness of this mixed force of over seven hundred thousand.

After all, a situation where Shizu armies united to resist an external enemy was rarer than a pie falling from the sky.

"Also, according to their discussions, the troops of the Dou Family, Wang Family, Han Family, and the Imperial Court will rendezvous outside Wuguan; the Xiao Family's troops will set out from Jian Pass; and the Ma Family's and our Yanzhou troops will rendezvous at Qin Pass. This is called the three-pronged campaign against Liang." Xu Ke added; this was all intelligence sent from Jingshi.

Zhao Xu nodded. "Father Emperor is not muddled after all; he knows that I and the Shizu cannot get along. That is fine, it saves me the disgust of seeing them."

He then asked: "What are the movements in Xiliang?"

"Xiliang is facing a formidable enemy; Ma Jin is currently repairing city walls and digging deep trenches with high ramparts. Xiliang is also currently moving grain, fodder, and troops toward Qinzhou and Yongzhou, looking as if they are preparing for battle," Xu Ke said.

"How about the Beidi?" Zhao Xu asked again.

This was what he cared about most; if it were only Xiliang, he would not need to participate, and he feared that Xiliang would struggle to withstand Da Song's campaign even then.

After all, he had already delivered some Artillery to the Imperial Guards and the Shizu.

But if the Beidi participated, the outcome of this war would be hard to predict.

Moreover, his primary motivation for participating in this war was to clash with the Beidi.

He believed the Beidi were also waiting to clash with him.

Since that was the case, then they would collide and see whose fist was harder.

"The Beidi have no unusual movements for now, but the sound of artillery in Jincheng is increasing, clearly indicating that the number of Beidi Artillery is growing," Xu Ke said.

After thinking for a moment, he added: "The only difference is that the Beidi Khan's second son, Wulanba, recently went to Gaoli."

"Gaoli?" Hearing this, Zhao Xu frowned.

Tiemuta went to Xiliang, and Wulanba went to Gaoli.

With the Beidi making moves in both the east and west simultaneously, he feared their scheme this time was not small.

Seeing Yan Wang looking quite troubled, Xu Ke felt a bit guilty. He said: "Currently, we have no informants in Gaoli. This subordinate will try to find a way to gain a foothold as soon as possible."

He had truly never considered Gaoli, as Gaoli was merely a vassal state of the Beidi.

Over the years, they had followed the Beidi like a shadow, attacking wherever the Beidi pointed.

Furthermore, the Goryeo Navy often came to the waters outside Yanzhou to raid the commoners who went out to fish, not only killing people but also stealing their catch.

After all, the shortest distance from Gaoli by sea to Yanzhou was only two or three hundred li.

Zhao Xu noticed Xu Ke's expression and smiled: "This is not your fault. After all, no one in the Four Courts speaks the Goryeo language, so it is difficult to plant informants in Gaoli."

"Among the sea pirates, there are those who have long mingled with Goryeo pirates; perhaps we can find a way through that," Xu Ke said.

When he went to Fanyang, he had chatted with the sea pirate Wei Feng in the prison and had gained some understanding of sea pirates.

Zhao Xu nodded.

The territory of Gaoli here, besides the peninsula, also encompassed the Jiaodong Peninsula of the contemporary era.

That is, the peninsula that stretches into the sea from the southwest of Liaoning.

From here to Liaojun, the shortest distance was only a little over two hundred li, which was extremely close.

Now, he really wanted to know what exactly Wulanba went to Gaoli to do.

After all, this was related to a major battle that would take place before long.

"The situation is becoming increasingly complex." A trace of worry appeared in Zhao Xu's eyes.

Gaoli.

Pingcheng.

Wulanba had not woken up even by noon; he was too tired last night. The King of Gaoli had sent six Beauties to his room, letting him indulge in pleasure to his heart's content.

At this moment, the blinding sunlight shone through the door crack, reflecting onto six pale, bare bodies.

He gave a light chuckle, put on his clothes, and walked out of the room.

Outside, palace maids wearing skirts with voluminous hems were waiting in attendance.

Seeing him come out, they immediately lowered their heads and knelt down.

Soon, a head palace maid ordered someone to fetch water for Wulanba to wash up.

The news of Wulanba waking up quickly reached the ears of the King of Gaoli.

He brought a group of officials to wait for orders in front of Wulanba's room.

A hundred years ago, Gaoli was still a vassal state of Great Song.

The King of Gaoli accepted the imperial investiture from the Emperor of Great Song.

But seeing the Northern Di becoming increasingly powerful, the King of Gaoli at that time, driven by ambition, harbored crooked thoughts.

The Koryo Army captured a large swath of territory belonging to Great Song in the North Territory in one fell swoop and immediately defected to the Northern Di.

Great Song wanted to attack Gaoli, but fearing the Northern Di would send troops, they had no choice but to let the matter drop.

Ninety years later, the Northern Di captured the Ningjin Dusi adjacent to Yanzhou, and Great Song completely lost all territory outside Yanguan.

"Great King Wulanba, did you enjoy yourself last night?" The King of Gaoli, Pu Renxi, was full of fawning expressions on his face.

The strength of the Northern Di was beyond doubt, and now Gaoli was situated in a corner on the east side of the Northern Di's territory.

The King of Gaoli and his officials all knew that once the Northern Di was angered, the destruction of Gaoli would happen in an instant.

Wulanba lazily came out of the room and looked at the King of Gaoli with disdain, "It was enjoyable enough, but you should be clear: I did not come to Gaoli for this matter. The Khan has decided to head south this autumn and winter to place a chess piece in Xiliang, and now it is time to place you, Gaoli, as a chess piece in the east. In this upcoming war, we Northern Di need to work with you to pin down the troops of Yan Wang!"

(https: //)

Let's set a small goal first, for example, remember it in 1 second: Book-Guest-Dwelling mobile version reading URL: