Chapter 623: Victory in Sight
Seeing that the little emperor had been at the front for a long time, and the enemy army could attack at any time, how could Zhuang Siqi stay calm, at this time, someone happened to report that Han Zhen, the commander of the right army, had led the cavalry to arrive and prepare to enter the camp, so he took this opportunity to invite the little emperor to the command post of the rear camp. Although it is only 500 paces away from the front line www.biquge.info it is built on a huge reef, surrounded by logs, and covered with multiple layers of logs, which is enough to resist the attack of the catapults and see the situation on the sea.
"The last general will see Your Majesty!" When Han Zhen saw the little emperor coming over, he immediately greeted him with a big salute.
"Good work, please get up!" Zhao Yu took two steps and put his hands together.
"The end will be late, Your Majesty is frightened!" Han Zhen got up and saluted again.
"Oh, the general doesn't have to be polite, you're coming fast enough, I thought it would take you another hour to arrive." Zhao Yu raised his hand and said, he knew that Jiang Wanzai was very strict in governing the army, but it was also annoying to have too many courtesies, and he had to be careful and cautious, especially the dead face that was always expressionless made people look uncomfortable, but it was better to be at ease with those 'rough people'.
"Your Majesty, the last general learned that the battle situation ahead was urgent, and after receiving the order, he led the cavalry battalion to come first, and the infantry and artillery battalions will arrive later!" Han Zhen replied.
"Your Majesty, Commander Han, still talk inside!" Zhuang Siqi said with a smile.
"No need, it's too stuffy inside!" Zhao Yu waved his hand and said, "The current enemy has 30,000 troops, once their fleet is destroyed and the back road is cut off, they will fight desperately to gain a foothold, so the pressure on your two armies is extremely great, and you must not underestimate the enemy." ”
"My subordinates will do their best!" Han Zhen saluted again, as soon as he heard that the little emperor was here, he already knew that the war was tense here, otherwise he would not have come in person.
"It's not about trying your best, it's about doing your best." Zhao Yu said with a straight face, "This time the enemy attacked Qiong, Ali Hague mobilized a total of 70,000 infantry and cavalry, 1,000 naval warships, and also recruited 10,000 troops and 20,000 soldiers in Huguang Province. At present, Ali Hague occupies Baisha Island with 30,000 troops led by Deputy Marshal Oluchi, using this as a springboard to attack Haitian Island, and he still has 40,000 soldiers as a reserve. And the five armies of our guard have all been transferred to the coast of the strait, and the naval army has also attacked in full, and there is a huge disparity in strength, and now although I have transferred 20,000 forbidden troops in front of the palace to come to reinforcements, the strength of the troops in the direction of Haikou is still inferior to the enemy. ”
"The subordinates obey the order, and the right army will not take a step back!" Han Zhen saluted again.
"The defense here is temporarily dominated by Han Commander, and Zhuang Commander is supplemented by you. The war is going on again, I'm going to the Acropolis, and you guys will report it in time! Zhao Yu thought about the fact that these two people were at the same level, if they didn't designate the person in charge, no one would be able to fight if they didn't obey anyone, and he couldn't always coordinate and command here. Although Han Zhen doesn't like himself, he is indeed a general, and he is calm in trouble; And Zhuang Siqi likes to be impulsive when he is young, and it is not wrong to be in a hurry and his brain is hot, so he still decided to take Han Zhen as the main coach.
"Obey the Divine Commandment!" Zhuang Siqi was a little surprised, but he still complied with His Majesty's arrangement......
Because of the low tide, the draft of the Sheji was too deep, and Zhao Yu was worried that the grounding had let them return to the port first, so they were going to return by land with Ni Liang, but seeing the lively fighting on Haitian Island over there, they took the dragon boat back instead. However, he did not go to the island, purely to demonstrate, and led a few boats to break down the pontoon bridge just erected by the Yuan army, and then drove away, which had the meaning of single-handedly taking the head of the general in the army.
The Song army saw that the drums were thundering, and they shouted for the emperor's might, cheering for His Majesty, and their morale was greatly boosted for a while; And the Yuan army looked at the pontoon bridge that had just been formed and turned into a pile of rotten boards, and the soldiers who built the bridge were struggling in the sea, so angry that they jumped to their feet and scolded, of course, they didn't forget to send him off with ten thousand crossbows, but how could they do it with a thick dragon boat? Of course, they were left with a frustrated face, so they could only continue to dismantle the ship's board and start over.
"Your Majesty, how are you having fun?"
"Huh?! Why is the gentleman here? Although the ending is still unknown, but today can be happy, it does make him angry, these days for such a little thing, I can't eat well and can't sleep, light the lamp and boil the oil to figure out how to keep Qiongzhou. was originally full of interest, but as soon as he went up to the city tower, he heard a cold question, and he fixed his eyes to see that it was indeed strict, and immediately drooped his head as if frost had hit it, and saluted with a smile.
"Your Majesty has personally led the troops into battle, and the right army is also in a hurry to reinforce, how can the minister lie down in the city!" Ying Jie Yan smiled coldly.
"Sir, I was wrong, there will never be a next time!" Zhao Yu hurriedly admitted his mistake, and saw that Lu Xiufu and a few other ministers who stayed in the city also came and said with a smile, "Yo, a few Aiqing have also arrived, why don't you serve tea and dinner?" ”
"Your Majesty sneaked out of the palace this time and didn't mention it, but why did he go into battle in person? If there is any case, how do we explain to the Queen Mother, how do we explain to the people of the Great Song Dynasty! Ying Jie Yan still complained.
"Sir, I saw that the Tartars were attacking too fiercely, and I couldn't help it in a hurry." Zhao Yu took Ying Jieyan's hand and shook it like a child.
"Your Majesty, this ......" The little emperor let go of his temper, and he lost his temper, and he was embarrassed to reprimand.
"The governor should stop blaming Your Majesty, and fortunately, Your Majesty commanded the emperor's boat to fire cannons in time to repel the Yuan army attacking Hekou and Haitian Island." Seeing that no one dared to intercede for the little emperor, but it was precisely because he couldn't stop him, Zhang Shijie thought about it and explained with a smile.
"Yes, Governor. Your Majesty is still young, and it is understandable to be reckless, and besides, there is a reason for it, so don't be harsh. Lu Xiufu also agreed. In fact, he also had a headache for His Majesty's stubbornness and unruliness, but he couldn't persuade himself. Thinking about it, it is not a bad thing to have someone who is afraid now, so he did not dissuade him, but Zhang Shijie started, and it would be inappropriate for him not to say anything.
"Hmph, Your Majesty should never forget that it is a daughter, and it is the country and the people of Li together, and you must not take risks without authorization." Ying Jie snorted coldly.
"Zuo Xiang and Mr. are here, won't the city of Nafu be unguarded?" Zhao Yu secretly thanked Lu Xiufu and Zhang Shijie, but after thinking about it, everyone came here, wouldn't Lao Wo sing the empty city plan.
"Oh, Your Majesty, don't worry, the minister has already ordered Jiang Xuan, the secretary of the military department, and Zhao Heluo, the prefect, to assist the imperial guards to defend the city, but they will not be lost!" Lu Xiufu said.
"Well, Jiang Shangshu is good at using soldiers, and Zhao and Luo are quite prestigious in Qiongzhou, and the two of them are just right to defend the city." Zhao Yu nodded.
"Your Majesty, please also move to the capital, it is more convenient there, and you can also take a rest!" Zhang Shijie suggested.
"Ahem...... Your Majesty, please! ”
"Okay, good, I just ate a big bowl of meat at the rear army, and it just so happens that I am also thirsty!" The city tower is tall, and the situation in front of him can be seen at a glance, of course Zhao Yu is reluctant to leave, but when he heard Ying Jieyan's dry cough, he immediately changed his mind and obeyed the tunnel.
"Haha......" Seeing that His Majesty was so jealous of the strictness, he couldn't help laughing.
"Alas......" Zhao Hao sighed when he saw this and went out first, which made him feel unladylike, but it caused everyone to laugh even more.
In fact, to be honest, he doesn't say that there are many strategists under his account now, but he can pull out a hundred or eighty at will, so he no longer urgently needs a person who can preside over the overall situation as before, and there is no need to be so jealous and strict. But he is still as obedient to him as before, first, he does not forget the old kindness; the second is to respect his character, which is worthy of his own respect; The third is also for everyone to see, if you are not afraid of anyone, it will definitely make people think that you will act arbitrarily and cause the uneasiness of the ministers. And if you are in awe, then let them feel at ease.
Zhang Shijie stayed on the city tower to continue to command the armies, Zhao Yu and Lu Xiufu and others went down to the city to go to the Yamen of the naval army, and the Acropolis was not a few steps away. And Ni Liang had already ordered the guard camp to set up a guard, and Wang De also led a group of attendants to arrange the food, and they had already prepared tea and sent snacks as soon as they arrived. He also went to the backyard first to wash his face, and changed out of his military uniform that was dirty with gunsmoke before coming to the back hall of the yamen.
At this time, all the battles have been engaged everywhere, and the battle reports are also sent like snowflakes, and their own bookstores and attendants will mark the latest battle situation on the sand table in time and draw it on the map, so that everyone can see it at a glance. At present, the Baisha Navy has broken through the ship formation of the Yuan army's escort fleet, sinking and damaging 100 enemy ships, and its own losses are very small, and it is still in fierce fighting; The Chengmai and Changhua navigatories had already launched an attack from behind the enemy's flank, and the two sides were engaged in fierce battles, forcing the enemy convoy to move closer to the coast at an accelerated pace.
The fiercest fighting was still at the mouth of the river and on Haitian Island. After the entry of the right army, the estuary was strengthened both in terms of strength and firepower, and the enemy's intensive attack was no longer effective, and the road to the attack was paved with corpses; Baisha Island was now overcrowded, and not only the island, but also the beaches where the tide receded were full of enemy soldiers on standby, who sent their catapults to the island to shoot at the Song troops defending the island. While erecting a pontoon bridge under the cover of a stone thrower, the Yuan army took advantage of the drop in the water level to swim across the sea with a shield and rush to the island, and the two sides fought fiercely.
At the most intense time, the Yuan army ignored the muddy mud of the tidal flats and forcibly charged the battle with cavalry. However, the various units of Qiongzhou did not retreat from the battle, and used ballistas and grenades to repel the enemy cavalry approaching the sand bank several times, and the corpses were almost leveled with the sand bank. After many fruitless attacks, the Yuan army launched a multi-way assault as Zhao Yu said, while the Song army's strength was difficult to deploy in the village, and it could only send troops to the village to launch a counterattack at the time of crisis, killing the enemy army back.
After dark, Jiang Cheng led the Chinese army and the front army of the forbidden army in front of the palace and the artillery battalion and rocket battalion to arrive, and Zhao Yu immediately ordered them to erect a pontoon bridge from the Acropolis to Jiangxi and Haitian Island, so as to facilitate the mobility and transportation of the wounded and replenishment of supplies by various units. The front army and the left army stationed along the coast were all in strict position to prevent the enemy from sneaking attack, and the prefectures and counties also organized volunteers to guard the administrative posts, strengthen coastal patrols, and search for the defeated army to prevent it from landing on the island from other places......
It was destined to be a sleepless night, with artillery fire outside, bursts of killing, and gunsmoke covering the stars and moon. Zhao Yu and a group of ministers were guarding in front of the sand table in the back hall to pay attention to the changes on the battlefield, and the fierce battle lasted until the hour, and the sound of the explosion gradually died down, but everyone still did not dare to be careless, and took the opportunity to replenish ammunition, rush to transport the wounded, and withdraw the rear army that had been fighting for a day to rest and recuperate, and replace it with the front army of the forbidden army in front of the palace.
"Your Majesty, now the Baisha Navy has defeated the enemy's escort fleet and captured more than 80 enemy ships, and the traitor Chen Yi took advantage of the darkness to lead more than 30 warships to defeat. At present, the three battalions of the naval army trapped the enemy ship brigade on the coast with a combined force, and only waited for the dawn to launch a decisive battle, so that our dynasty was already half victorious. Lu Xiufu looked at the sand table and said.
"Well, now the situation is improving!" Zhao Yu nodded.
"Now as long as we hold the beachhead without losing it, tomorrow we can turn to the offensive and annihilate the enemy!" Liu Shi, who stayed in the camp, said bravely.
"The Yuan army has been fighting hard for a day, and it is already sleepy and tired, and there is no fresh water available on Baisha Island, how can tens of thousands of people gather on the island last, and the combat strength will gradually decline, and they will not be able to fight again. The ships were destroyed again, and it was difficult to evacuate, and simply besieging them would be defeated without a fight. Ying Jie Yan stroked his beard and smiled.
"Congratulations to Your Majesty first, this battle is a great victory for my dynasty, and the Tartars will not dare to offend me Qiongzhou!" Chen Zhong smiled and arched his hand.
"I don't dare to say that I have won a big victory at the moment." Zhao Yu waved his hand and said, "Ladies and gentlemen, at this moment, the enemy has exhausted the troops of Huguang Province to the south, and the enemy Fujian Xuanxuan has sent his troops to occupy the city, and the defense of the enemy's southeast coastal provinces will inevitably be empty. If we defeat Ali Hague, will it be feasible to take the opportunity to attack the coastal states of Quang Nam West Road? ”
"The minister thinks that His Majesty's words are reasonable, the enemy on the two roads of Guangnan has no available soldiers, but it is the time for us to use troops, and when the king arrives, the people everywhere will respond to it in groups and regain the lost territory!" Xu Zongren, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, said.
"I think we need to be cautious, in this battle, I have exhausted all the armies, and I will be tired after a long time of hard fighting, and it is difficult to replenish, and the military equipment is consumed a lot, and it is difficult to replenish it for a while." Chen Zhongwei objected.
"I think that it is difficult to find fighters, and if you miss waiting for the arrival of enemy reinforcements, you will pay a greater price!" Liu Shi said bravely.
"What do you think?" Seeing the difference of opinions, Zhao Yu turned his face and asked Lu Xiufu.
"Your Majesty, our dynasty only has 100,000 infantry troops, and if we use two large troops, it will be insufficient, and even if we can recover the lost territory, it will be difficult for the enemy army to defend it. However, Guangnan West Road is mountainous, and now it is the dry season, and the water level of the rivers has dropped, and it is difficult for large ships to go upstream, and it is difficult to transport materials. And although Qiongzhou has a little savings, it is difficult to last! Lu Xiufu replied after a moment's silence.
"Your Majesty, Prime Minister Zuo is reasonable!" Ying Jieyan is really a headache, how can this child's head grow, the situation has just improved, he thinks about using troops to regain the lost territory, and thinks about it, "When we entered Qiong, Your Majesty once said that we would do the policy of Taoguang and cultivate obscurity, accumulate strength and then restore the country." Although this battle was won, it was also very badly damaged, and if the troops were forcibly used, there would be damage. If the enemy offends Joan again, we will be powerless to stop it! ”
"Hmm......" Zhao Hao thought about it, but he was really unwilling to let go of such a good opportunity......