Jeluther was not drunk that night, and did not fall asleep until midnight. The next morning, before I got up, some soldiers came running, but they were stopped at the door. It wasn't until nearly noon that Yeluther woke up, put on his official uniform, and went out of his bedroom.

Before washing, the soldiers came in quickly, and said with a forked hand: "King, the scout has come to report that the Song army has come from Dingzhou!" ”

Jerlother was stunned and asked, "How many people are here?" ”

The soldier said: "The scout cavalry is endless, as if there are tens of thousands of people!" ”

Hearing this, Jerodher did not violently stir his spirit, and did not dare to slack off. He said to the soldiers: "Order the generals to come to the official hall and discuss matters together!" ”

The soldiers agreed and walked quickly. After cleaning up, Jerlother walked to the official hall and sat down in the middle. Looking at the generals standing below, many people were talking about it, knowing in their hearts that they might already know the news. If you hurt the wine yourself and miss the time, others may already know.

Yeluliang stepped forward and arched his hand: "King, the Song army of Bingzhou will set off this morning, and it is expected that it will arrive in Quyang County this evening." It is reported that there are tens of thousands of Song troops coming, and the lineup is neat, so we must be careful to take precautions! ”

Jerthean said, "Which leader?" Which soldiers and horses are coming? Where did they go? ”

Yeluliang said: "The Song army came very quickly, and the scouts have not yet found out. ”

Jerlother didn't nod and motioned for Jerry to stand down. said: "The Song army that guarded the city before yesterday was not intercepted, and it seems that they have fled back to Dingzhou." There are 40,000 Song troops in Dingzhou, and this time they will come, presumably there will be no less. What do you think should be done? ”

Xiao Hu on the side saw the forked hands: "King, our army has 30,000 horsemen, Quyang City is small, and the army is not allowed to use it." The last general is not talented, and he is willing to take 10,000 soldiers and horses out of the city to meet the enemy. If we are lucky enough to win, it will be the luck of our army. ”

Yeluther didn't think about it for a while, and said: "The Song army that came must be tens of thousands, what can you do with 10,000 people?" However, Quyang City is small, 30,000 people are in the city, and they can't be used. You take 10,000 men to the west of the city, and line up between the water and the Changxing River, so as to prevent the Song army from going around to Quyang City and blocking our way. I took the rest of my soldiers and horses out of the city and fought with the Song people under the city! ”

Xiao Hu saw the fork and said yes, and returned to the queue. Although he did not participate in the Chongyuan Rebellion, he has always been good friends with Xiao Ge, like a brother. However, Xiao Hujian was good at drilling camps, and he was clever, Chongyuan was executed, and he quickly gained Hongji's trust and came out to lead the troops.

The descendants of the Khitan and the royal family are its foundation, and after Yelu Hongji punished the Yuan, in addition to eliminating the first evil, he did not care about the generals. After a year, the crack was largely repaired. Xiao Hu saw that these people who did not participate in the rebellion were even more reused. This time the Song Dynasty used troops, and the Khitan also had the intention of bridging the tribe through the war. The harmony between the descendants of the royal family is the foundation of Khitan stability.

Yeluliang came out and said: "King, the Song army is coming, and you can't underestimate it. We still hold on to the city and wait for it to retreat. If the army goes out of the city to meet the battle, I am afraid that it will be taken advantage of. The flying fox in the rear is far away, and if it is unfavorable for a while, there will be no reinforcements. ”

Yelu Tien didn't say: "Quyang Town, how can you put 30,000 soldiers and horses?" You guard the city, and when I go out of the city, guard the rear wings. The Song army is nothing more than 30,000 or 40,000 people, and I have 20,000 cavalry, which is enough to compete with it! ”

Yeluliang had no choice but to say yes and retreat.

At this time, it was already afternoon, when Yeluther was not discussing with the generals, the soldiers came to report that the Song army was less than five miles away from Quyang.

Yelu Tie didn't take a few shots, and said loudly: "If the Song army wins this battle, Dingzhou will be empty, like probing for things!" The Song army is good at defending the city, but this time they came to attack the city, not to die? Tomorrow go out of the city with me and fight to the death with the Song army! ”

The generals saw that Jerodher was not proud, and they made a high promise together.

Liu Jianji led the army and went down to the village five miles away from Quyang. ordered the army to make food, and several important generals came to their military tents.

After moving his muscles and bones a little, he sat down in the tent, Liu Jianji closed his eyes and rested a little. Today it was dawn and there was a rapid march all the way, and finally arrived outside Quyang City before dark. At this time, artillery and other slower-moving troops were still on the road, and they came overnight, not knowing whether they would be able to stop fighting tomorrow. However, there is no way, Liu Jianji must block the Khitan army in Quyang, and he cannot delay for a moment.

Not long after, the generals entered the tent. Liu Jianji opened his eyes and let everyone sit on both sides.

Everyone sat down, and Liu Jianji said: "According to the report of the reconnaissance cavalry, there are about 30,000 Khitan soldiers and horses who have come, and they are all stationed around Quyang City. It has been carefully checked, but fortunately they rested in Quyang for a day and did not divide their troops to other places. As long as we can block them here and not harm the surrounding state troops, the court will not be responsible for the loss of the city. If the Khitans were allowed to go south and break through the railway line, it would be a big deal. ”

Zhu Gui said: "There are 30,000 Khitan people, and we are also 30,000 people, isn't it just a chess opponent?" ”

Liu Jianji shook his head: "If the two armies are in formation, why are you afraid of them?" The Khitans were all cavalry, and there was no reason to open a formation against the enemy. What they are most afraid of now is that they will divide their troops to the south. The river is shallow, and the water can be crossed, how can it be prevented? ”

Fang Hao said: "As long as we set up a position, it will be difficult for the Khitan people to run." Tomorrow there will be no rush to engage the enemy, but the whole army will be deployed and block the nearby roads. The Khitans retreated north, there was a mountain road in Daxingshan, and our army could pursue them from behind, and they could not escape far. ”

Liu Jianji nodded: "What I said is that Quyang has been lost, and we don't have to rush to fight the Khitan." Tomorrow, Fang Hao's department will line up to the west and block the road. On the front, I and Zhu Gui's department, defend for a day or two, and wait until the battle line is arranged. ”

Zhu Gui said: "Our soldiers are coming to the city, but we are afraid that the Khitans will come out of the city to attack." ”

Liu Jianji said: "We have all the guns, that is, all the 30,000 Khitan people are coming to attack, and what are you afraid of him!" The strength of the Khitans is that the cavalry comes and goes, and it is difficult for our infantry to capture. As long as you block the road and go head-to-head, they are not our opponents. ”

Fang Hao said: "The Khitans occupied Quyang, which was nothing more than attacking Dingzhou in the east, or harassing the prefecture and county in the south. Their 30,000 cavalry wants to attack Dingzhou with insufficient troops, as long as we block the road to the south, the Khitans can only trap Quyang! ”

Liu Jianji nodded: "That's right." The most important thing in this battle is not that we defeat the Khitans and take back Quyang. Instead, the Khitans should be blocked here and prevented from going south. Therefore, it is necessary to slow down the initial stage and arrange the troops well. Wait until we finish arranging, and then we will have a showdown with the Khitans! The Khitans broke Quyang and robbed and killed. Along the way, you have also seen how miserable the people who escaped from Quyang were! Before the strong wall cleared the wilderness, all the people nearby entered the city, and after this battle, Quyang was almost swept away! ”

When they heard this, they all bowed their heads and did not speak. After the Khitans invaded Quyang City, they burned and killed on a large scale, and the people had little left. There are more than 4,000 households, and only one or two hundred households have been seen along the way. After this battle, the population of Quyang was almost empty and became a no-man's land. Song Jun saw it in his eyes, and he was all in a heavy mood. Liu Jianji, as the defender of Dingzhou, felt particularly uncomfortable. Even if he recaptures Quyang City, how should the dead and injured people be explained? The clear field of the fortified wall can make the enemy army nowhere to get food and grass supplies, but once the city is broken, the losses are extremely heavy.