The Jurchens captured Xiongzhou in half a month, and ate nearly 150,000 soldiers and horses of the Guangxin Army, the Baoding Army, and the Yongning Army. Even if Bai Qi was in charge of Xiongzhou City, he could not escape the result of being captured, and Bai Qi had no choice but to lead 40,000 remnants of the army to defeat. Fortunately, the Jurchens suffered huge losses in the siege and were extremely tired, so they did not pursue. In fact, if the Xiongzhou defenders can hold out a little longer, I am afraid that the Jurchens themselves will have to retreat first. It's a pity that the literacy of today's Great Zhou soldiers and horses is too low, and they have persisted for seven days, and they have not seen a single soldier rush to the rescue, and they have reached the limit of their psychology, so they are defeated.

The situation took a turn for the worse, and Guo Xu's hope was completely disappointed. But the bad news doesn't stop there, on the 23rd day of the lunar month, on the peaceful Chinese New Year's Eve, the important town of Taiyuan Province in the northwest of Gyeonggi was lost. The Liao army stormed Taiyuan at the cost of 30,000 people, cutting off the road for the Northwest Army to rush to the capital. The 250,000 soldiers and horses in the northwest are receiving the holy decree to go to the capital to defend, they have arrived in the territory of Lanzhou, and are about to go south to the capital through Taiyuan Mansion. However, after Taiyuan Mansion was conquered, the way of the 250,000 troops was cut off, and the situation was extremely embarrassing.

This is exactly the plan set by the previous Jurchen chieftain Wanyan Agu Da and several powerful tribal chiefs of the Liao State. The Liao army's target was Taiyuan Province, because it was cutting off the Northwest Army's road to Bianliang. After taking Taiyuan Province, the Northwest Army of the Great Zhou Dynasty had to go to great lengths to reinforce Gyeonggi. They have only one way, which is to recapture Taiyuan Mansion and open up the passage. There is no other way. It is unrealistic to make a detour, and the purpose of the Liao people holding Taiyuan Mansion is to prevent the movement of the Northwest Army, and even if the Northwest Army detours, it will be attacked by the Liao army on the flank. Not to mention that such a large number of soldiers and horses would be able to travel two or three hundred miles from the mountains and rivers of Jindi without marching from the official road. Unless all baggage is discarded, it will be difficult to move an inch.

Of course, the Jurchen army did not live up to this excellent situation. After Xiongzhou was captured, the Jurchen army only rested for two days before moving south. In the five days after the 24th day of the lunar month, the Jurchen army attacked all the way to the southwest, Lianke Baozhou and Zhendingfu. After that, he attacked south along the eastern foothills of Taihang Mountain, broke through Zhaozhou and Xingzhou, and captured Handan. Everywhere they went, the defenders of the state capital were invincible and did not dare to resist at all. The people fled to the south with their families and mouths, and on the official roads and paths to the south, cars and horses were blocked, people were crowded, men and women were frightened, children were crying, and everyone was colorless, and they could not live in fear.

The people in the north originally wanted to reunite their families for the New Year, but they had to flee south with their families on this matter. On New Year's Eve, it was originally a time for family reunions with the sound of firecrackers, but countless people stumbled and walked in the cold and windy night. All they knew was to run south, away from the Jurchens who were as aggressive as tigers and wolves. It is said that everywhere these Jurchens went, they were all scorched, men, women and children were all killed, and they could not stay, so they could only run south desperately. Although they didn't know if they could escape the butcher's knife of the Jurchens by fleeing south, all the people almost had a consensus, that is, the land of Gyeonggi was safe, and the emperor and the imperial court would definitely find a way to resist the enemy. That was their only hope.

The New Year of the third year of the Great Zhou Xingguo quietly came under this circumstance.

……

Bianliang, the capital city, the first day of the Lunar New Year, if it was in previous years, at this moment it would be full of lights and people. Men, women and children wear new clothes, and after the reunion dinner, they come out to visit the temple fair and watch the dragon lantern dancers. The emperor will also come out to patrol the streets on the morning of the first day of the Lunar New Year and have fun with the people. The sound of firecrackers in the streets and alleys will also be non-stop, and the gongs and drums at several major temple fairs will also be noisy.

However, this year's New Year, the entire capital is deserted, like a dead city. The shops on the streets are closed, and passers-by are hurried in the cold wind, shrinking their heads and browning sadly. Most of the shops don't even have peach charms to hang lanterns, and there are few people on the temple fair squares such as Xiangguoji Temple and Xingguoji Temple. Although there are also some pungent aromas lingering on the streets, and occasionally there are laughter from the people of high-rise mansions, but compared with the desertion of the entire capital, it is as ethereal and distant as an illusion on the clouds, so out of place.

The reason is naturally because the news that the Jurchens went all the way south is no longer a secret, and the people of the entire capital already know about the bad situation. The Jurchen army had already conquered the important town of Handan, and the distance from Bianliang was less than six hundred miles, and the smell of blood could already be smelled in the air. The Jurchens are coming. is about to go to Bianliang City, at this time, unless there are no people who have no heart and no lungs, who still has the heart to celebrate the New Year?

There is no need to inquire about the news in the north of the situation, and every citizen in the capital can deeply understand this. A few days ago, a curfew had been imposed in the capital, and several battalions of soldiers and horses of the forbidden army had been transferred from the school barracks outside the city into the city. The streets were filled with soldiers and horses every day, and the city gates had long since forbidden anyone to enter or leave. More than a month ago, many people left the capital to avoid disaster in the south, and many people chose to wait and see. Now, none of these people can leave, and the imperial court has issued a ban on anyone from leaving the capital. Whoever flees the capital at this time will be accused of disturbing people's hearts and will be beheaded. The ban of the imperial court also corroborates the sinister situation from another angle.

On the wall of the outer city of Bianliang, a large number of materials for defending the city have begun to move to the city. A large number of bed crossbow carts in the treasury of the forbidden army were loaded by carts and transported under the city wall, and then carried up the city wall one by one. The officials of Kaifeng Prefecture have begun to inform the young men of the common people from door to door, telling them that they are not allowed to hide, and once the government informs them, they must report to the yamen. Of course, the people understood that this was to recruit young and strong people to prepare for the defense of the city. When Bianliang City is attacked, young and strong people will be recruited to defend the city, carry supplies, and fight in the city.

All of this indicates that Bianliang City is already on the verge of war. The threat of the Jurchens has enveloped the capital hundreds of miles away. In this New Year, the whole capital is not shrouded in a peaceful atmosphere, but a lot of panic.

Guo Xu sat in the imperial study in the side hall of the Chongzheng Palace, wearing a grand crown dress. On the first day of the Lunar New Year, according to the rules, he still led the ministers to pay tribute to the ancestors of heaven and earth, so he wore the most solemn crown dress. He hadn't had time to change his dress yet.

His mood was very complicated, and when he worshipped in front of the ancestral tablet not long ago, his heart was full of shame. The Great Zhou Dynasty, such a glorious and powerful country, has now become like this in its own hands. When he knelt in front of the tablets of his ancestors and ancestors, he really had a feeling of being shameless to see them. Because of his incompetence and stupidity, the Great Zhou Dynasty was about to be buried in his own hands. How unwilling I am, how anxious my heart is.

Footsteps sounded, Guo Xu looked up, and Lu Zhongtian walked in.

"Grandfather, are the ministers scattered?" Guo Xu hurriedly got up and asked.

Lu Zhongtian nodded and said, "They refused to leave, and the old minister persuaded them to leave." They hoped that the emperor would come up with a corresponding strategy, but the old minister knew that the emperor was afraid that he would not be able to come up with any countermeasures now, so instead of making noise here, it was better to let them leave. ”

Guo Xu sighed and sat down slowly, frowning: "Yes, what can I do?" I don't know what to do now. ”

Lu Zhongtian said lightly: "The emperor now knows that the old minister's proposal was right. The emperor was unwilling, and he was counting on the soldiers and horses in the border towns to fight the Jurchens. Now I understand, my Da Zhou's soldiers and horses are not the opponents of the Jurchens at all. Listening to the words of the old minister, he withdrew all the soldiers and horses to Gyeonggi to defend it to the death, and it would not bury the hundreds of thousands of troops in the border towns. This is even more tricky. ”

Guo Xu looked ashamed and sighed: "I didn't expect that the Jurchens would be so treacherous. What I don't understand is how the Jurchens knew about my plan, and they actually besieged the city to send reinforcements to ambush the reinforcements halfway. I was a little skeptical that there was a Jurchen response in the court. ”

Lu Zhongtian frowned and said, "What does the emperor mean by this?" Only the emperor and the ministers and a few people around the ministers knew about the emperor's plan. Could it be that the emperor suspects that the old minister is collaborating with the enemy? ”

Guo Xu hurriedly waved his hand and said, "No, no, how could I think so?" I just think something is wrong. ”

Lu Zhongtian said coldly: "The emperor had better not think about it, if the emperor is suspicious of others at this moment, it will make the situation even more out of control." If the emperor doesn't even trust the people around him, will the old man still dare to give advice to the emperor? ”

Guo Xu hurriedly said: "Grandfather, don't be too careful, I have no such intention." ”

Lu Zhongtian snorted coldly and was silent. Guo Xu said softly: "Grandfather, what should we do in the current situation?" My grandfather must help me think of a countermeasure. They are only a few hundred miles away from the capital. ”

Lu Zhongtian groaned: "Your Majesty, the old minister has already given an order. The Shunan Army and the Ansu Army have quickly withdrawn to Gyeonggi. The Pingding Army and the Weisheng Army on the Hedong Road and the Amway Army in the north are also on their way to the capital, and they will arrive in the capital in a few days. The 30,000 soldiers and horses of the Daimyo's Mansion were also heading south in the starry night. In this case, it should be possible to gather about 140,000 soldiers and horses in Gyeonggi. Coupled with the 200,000 forbidden troops in the capital, when the Jurchens arrived in Gyeonggi, we should still have 340,000 soldiers and horses waiting for them. We still have an advantage in numbers. The Jurchens' 250,000 soldiers and horses are now less than 210,000, and the old minister thinks that they can still fight. ”

Guo Xu shrank his head and frowned: "It's a pity that the Northwest Army was stopped west of Taiyuan Mansion, hey, let's be honest, I have no confidence in holding Bianliang." In today's imperial history, Cheng Shen Fang proposed to me that I should go on a southern tour, grandfather, or ...... Let's leave Bianliang to avoid the limelight? Go to Jiangning Mansion or Hangzhou Ducheng. ”

Lu Zhongtian glared at Guo Xu and shouted in a deep voice: "The emperor wants to escape? ”