Chapter 608: What Does It Mean to Be a Famed General? (Leaning Back Tactically)

A fine book...

Youzhou city — the original Lulong Army Military Governor's headquarters was already vast enough, since it had been converted from the Eastern Ping Commandery Prince's mansion of An Lushan in years past.

But after Yelu Ruan ascended the throne, before the seat beneath him was even steady, he conscripted tens of thousands of laborers and renovated the headquarters once more, naming it the Palace of Accumulated Blessings.

This was not because Yelu Ruan was particularly fond of luxury; in truth, apart from liking a few cups of wine like the vast majority of Khitans, this lord had no great vices.

He built this Palace of Accumulated Blessings, first, because according to Khitan custom, the best way for the Khitan ruler to seize power was to establish an ordo camp.

So as soon as the Palace of Accumulated Blessings was complete, Yelu Ruan could not wait to establish his own trusted ordo camp, called the Yelu Ordo.

"Yelu" is a transliteration of the Khitan word for "flourishing"; "ordo" is the original meaning of "palace camp."

Yelu Ruan took his father Yelu Bei's guard troops from the Eastern Dan Kingdom period, plus the Han and non-Han populace of Yunzhou and Youzhou, as the Yelu Ordo.

He established Yunzhou, Fengsheng Prefecture, Youzhou, and the various tribes of the Eastern Dan Kingdom as four Tixia Commands.

Among them were three thousand regular households, five thousand Han and non-Han transferred households, six thousand regular adult males, nine thousand Han and non-Han transferred adult males, and in addition five thousand cavalry.

With these twenty thousand men, Yelu Ruan — this emperor who had been entirely pushed forward by the crowd — finally began to look somewhat the part.

The second reason was that Yelu Ruan wanted to win over the various tribes of the steppe.

The tribal herdsmen of the steppe were not like the Han people; they had no concepts such as benevolence or virtue.

All they knew was that a Khitan emperor who seemed to dwell in a palace of immortals, feasting on rare delicacies, with endless beauties and fine wine, must be the mightiest and richest sovereign under heaven.

Because of this, Yelu Ruan quickly recruited over ten thousand cannon-fodder unarmored horse archers.

And in doing so, he established his prestige in the hearts of the Khitan people, reviving them from the enormous blow dealt to all Khitans by Yelu Deguang's death in battle.

The Khitans of the present now seemed to be recovering somewhat of their former appearance as a flourishing steppe power.

Only, the price for all of this was borne entirely by the Han folk of the Sixteen Prefectures of You and Yun.

The Han people of Youzhou in particular — for Yelu Ruan's construction of the Palace of Accumulated Blessings, for entertaining the great chieftains of the steppe tribes, and for the Khitan troops coming from Liaoxi — the number of ruined households was beyond counting.

Yelu Ruan received Liu Zhiyuan's letter at the end of the third month, and Wang Jun arrived in Youzhou shortly after.

But Yelu Ruan was still hesitant at this time, because he knew that the Khitan people's morale had only recovered on the surface, and their actual strength had not even recovered on the surface.

To throw everything he had southward now — if they met with a setback, the little warmth he had so painstakingly gathered would scatter completely.

Wang Jun had no choice but to go seek out the Grand Xiangwen Yelu Wuzhi and ask him to step forward and persuade Yelu Ruan.

And Yelu Wuzhi had been waiting precisely for Wang Jun to come find him; after selling this favor, he entered the palace to see Yelu Ruan.

When Yelu Ruan saw Yelu Wuzhi enter, he hurriedly waved for the surrounding inner attendants to withdraw.

Yelu Wuzhi did not bother much with ceremony toward Yelu Ruan either, because at this point, in this Khitan state that had only just stabilized, most of the power was held in Yelu Wuzhi's hands.

He grasped both military and civil affairs; apart from Yelu Ruan's Yelu Ordo, which he could not reach into, in all other matters, without Yelu Wuzhi's nod, even Yelu Ruan's word did not count.

Yelu Ruan frowned, very naturally poured himself a bowl of wine, and then drained it in one gulp.

"Grand Xiangwen, must we truly march the whole army south to stake our lives on Liu Zhiyuan's throne?"

Yelu Wuzhi shook his head. "Does Your Majesty still remember what I once said?"

Yelu Ruan said in a puzzled low voice: "The Grand Xiangwen said Liu Zhiyuan is old and declining, not a long-lived countenance, and his sons have no talent either, and told me to grow my hair long in the manner of the Han people, and think of ways to win the hearts of the Hedong army."

Yelu Wuzhi shook his head again, and only began to speak after seeing Yelu Ruan's expression turn somewhat unpleasant.

"These matters are not what Your Majesty should be considering now, because they are matters for after the Shao Ming Son of Heaven is defeated.

What I wish to tell Your Majesty is that we have no room to choose at present.

Because Your Majesty's foundation actually lies in the Han territory of the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan-Yun, but the Han people of the Sixteen Prefectures do not welcome us Khitans riding on top of their heads.

The reason they have not resisted fiercely now is that they are still watching and waiting; only if we can defeat the Shao Ming Son of Heaven will they truly submit.

If we are defeated, the seemingly docile Han commoners of these Sixteen Prefectures will immediately turn into the most ferocious hungry wolves.

In the world today, everyone knows that our Great Khitan must join hands with the King of Beiping to have the ability to oppose the Shao Ming Son of Heaven.

If we now sit and watch the King of Beiping be defeated, does Your Majesty think we can still hold the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan-Yun?

I fear that by then even the prefectures north of the mountains and in Liaoxi could not be held."

The words were clear enough. Yelu Ruan's expression shifted twice, and then he let out a long sigh.

"Then let it be as the Grand Xiangwen says. Muster all the regular adult males and Han and non-Han transferred males of the Western Capital Circuit, Central Capital Circuit, and Eastern Capital Circuit, together with the steppe tribes, and march south."

On the twelfth day of the fourth month, Yelu Ruan held the Shooting the Ghost Arrow ceremony in Youzhou.

Yelu Ruan drew seven thousand cavalry from the ordo camp guards, and twelve thousand from the Yelu Ordo.

From the Western Capital, Central Capital, Supreme Capital, and Eastern Capital circuits, over ten thousand Han and non-Han cavalry, plus five thousand infantry each from the Balhae and Xi peoples.

In all, forty thousand horse and foot, marching south from Youzhou, to rendezvous with Liu Zhiyuan at Beizhou according to the established plan.

And long before this, Zhang Zhao had already led his army to the prefectural seat of Xiangzhou, Anyang, less than sixty li from the Fushui–Zhangshui line where Yan Jin and Guo Wei faced off.

And having reached this place, only after carefully surveying the situation along the Zhangshui line did Zhang Zhao realize that Yan Jin's achievement could be called absolutely tremendous!

Because in this era, between Hedong's Taiyuan and Yecheng on the plains of Hebei, there was a water route that could be traveled.

Starting from the south of Taiyuan, one could go southeast via the Xianggu River — that is, the Xiangyu River north of the later Taigu county seat — and then split at the border between the later Taigu County and Yushe County.

One branch went due south, passing through the Wuxiang River and the Nie River — that is, the later Zhuozhang River — then turned east north of later Changzhi, arriving near Ye County.

The other branch went southeast, and through some twenty li of overland portage, reached the upper Qingzhang River and then continued southeast, likewise reaching Yecheng.

These two water routes, by later ages, did not carry much water, and some stretches of the river channels were difficult to clear; in an age of high-speed rail and expressways everywhere, they were not even worth calling chicken ribs.

But at this time, to say nothing of high-speed rail and expressways, in an age where even a small track passable by oxcart had to be praised as convenient transport, these two water routes saved an enormous amount of transport capacity and were simply too convenient.

Add to that the environment of this time being somewhat better than later ages, the flow of the Xianggu River and Wuxiang River being somewhat greater, and traveling by water from Hedong to Hebei could be called the most convenient way.

And after the Qingzhang River and Zhuozhang River merged into the Zhang River, the place with the best terrain downstream, most favorable for defense, was Yecheng.

Now Yan Jin, commanding a great army, had seized Yecheng in one stroke, directly blocking the Hedong army's smooth passage into Hebei, and thereby their ability to rely on the Zhang River to control the line, bottle up the great army of Zhang and Zhou in Xiang and Wei prefectures, and even advance to the Yellow River.

Although Guo Wei reacted quickly as well, after all Liu Zhiyuan's resolve to seize Hebei had come a little late, with the result that Yan Jin — originally ordered to garrison the Yellow River line from Huazhou to Liyang — beat Guo Wei to Yedu and held it.

This is the role of a famed general and famed commander who holds the whole situation in his mind; Yan Jin's northward advance averted the most unfavorable situation for Zhang and Zhou in Hebei.

And moreover, his northward advance was made without Zhang Zhao having given him any order — he led his personal troops to risk seizing Yecheng, and with a thousand-odd men beat back a probing attack by several thousand of Guo Wei's troops.

Only then did he get Cao Yanxi, who was left guarding the eastern capital, to agree to throw everything into sending five thousand more troops, and only thus was Yecheng held.

One could say it was perilous in the extreme!

Of course, Guo Wei also lived up to being one of the few renowned commanders of this age. After Yan Jin beat him to the prize, he quickly relied on the terrain advantages of the Fu River and Fu Mountain to establish a solid defensive line at Fuyang (Ci County).

After somewhat stabilizing the situation, Guo Wei again sent troops westward, to Hezhang at the confluence of the Qingzhang River and the Zhuozhang River, where he built a chain of forts and earthen walls.

Supplies coming continuously from Hedong were stockpiled near Hezhang, thereby ensuring the army's provisions, fodder, weapons, and equipment.

Although Hezhang's position and terrain advantages were far inferior to Yecheng's, it at last gave the Hedong troops coming from Taiyuan a base from which to settle and launch attacks.

"Sage, Lord Yan has sent a military report. Three days ago, Li Rong, the Army Supervisor of the Yicheng Army, led fifteen hundred cavalry and infantry, defeated a detachment of the Hedong army, and seized three stockades the Hedong army had built twenty li east of Hezhang.

Lord Yan has already ordered Commander Zhang Zhaojun (Ma Shacai) of the Right Jinwu Guard to lead two thousand troops to support him.

He further requests that the Sage select a capable general to go garrison Yecheng, for Lord Yan intends to personally lead troops to attack Hezhang."

"Bring the map!" Zhang Zhao quickly waved his hand, and had the staff officers of the Wangyi Division bring the map. His hand traced upward along the Zhang River, and he soon found the map of the area around Hezhang.

Xue Tongyi, sent back by Yan Jin, looked at where Zhang Zhao's finger pointed and said to Zhang Zhao, "Lord Yan sent Li Rong westward because he sensed that the Zhang River has recently begun to shrink. By rights, with the weather now turning warm, the Zhang River's flow should have greatly increased."

Zhang Zhao rubbed his chin and looked at Xue Tongyi, asking, "Yan Jin's meaning is that Guo Wei may have built a dam upstream on the Zhang River to block the water, intending to flood Yecheng?"

But having said this, Zhang Zhao shook his head. "No! Guo Wei cannot flood Yecheng. In former years, Emperor Wu of Wei flooded Yecheng and captured Shen Pei because the Cao army's strength in open-field battle was overwhelming, far beyond what Yuan Shang could match, so they could besiege the city and strike at relief forces while simultaneously flooding Yecheng.

Now Guo Wei has fewer than thirty thousand troops at Fuyang, and he must divide his forces to hold Fuyang and Hezhang. He has no ability at all to fight us in the open field.

Moreover, places like Hezhang are dozens of li from Yecheng. The Zhang River rushes down from too great a distance and simply cannot break through Yecheng.

What is more, building a dam on the Zhang River is an enormous project, and Guo Wei is unlikely to have the manpower to complete it."

The assembled commanders all nodded, but Huang Yingda hesitantly said in a low voice, "In former years, when the Sage traveled far from Shouchang to Anxi, who would have imagined the Sage could have today's achievements?

I fear nothing else, only that Guo Wei has some secret method unknown to us. What if he truly can block the Zhang River and then flood Yecheng?

If Yecheng is lost, the Hedong army can rely on the Zhang River to cut off our road north, while they can move supplies with ease and come and go freely.

Lord Yan probably has this concern as well, which is why he sent Li Yun westward."

The veteran general He Fujin also spoke up in counsel beside Zhang Zhao: "Commander Huang speaks reason. However, Lord Yan is a commander of a whole front and must not be moved lightly. I beg to lead two thousand cavalry to go west to Hezhang in Lord Yan's place, to probe Guo Wei's true situation."

Before Zhang Zhao had made his choice, Huang Yingda clasped his hands and said, "Such a small matter is fitting for an officer like me to investigate by forced marches through the night. I am willing to lead my own fifteen hundred Uyghur sworn followers to go coordinate with Zhang Zhaojun and Li Rong."

Zhang Zhao nodded and quickly made his decision. "I ask Sir He to go to Yecheng and assist Yan Jin in holding it. Huang Yingda will lead his own sworn followers to support Zhang Zhaojun and Li Rong.

If Guo Wei truly is building a dam east of Hezhang to block the water, Sir He may hold Yecheng and order Yan Jin to take ten thousand cavalry and infantry and go attack Hezhang."