On 14 October, after Xu Wei sent Liang Xing and other generals back to the army, he convened a military meeting attended by important civil and military officials from the Control Division and Qin Fengshuai to study the matter of launching a counterattack in Fengxiang Prefecture. In view of the fact that the Jin-Han coalition army has been attrition at Zhu Ji Pass for a long time, their morale is low, and Li Cheng and other generals have fled to the Song Dynasty, the officials of the two divisions agreed that now is the best time to launch a counterattack.

Xu Wei issued an order after the meeting, and Yao Bilong led the Xihe soldiers to rush to Fengxiang Mansion; Du Feihu led another 1,500 horsemen and 4,000 infantry troops to help; Li Cheng was temporarily appointed to control the surrender of 13,000 troops, and Qin Fengshuai was assigned to distribute grain and grass, and moved eastward from the south bank of Weishui; Xu Hong, the commander of the Liangxing pacification division, led 7,000 horse infantry troops from Baoji to cross the pontoon bridge and rushed to Zhuji Pass.

At this point, the Purple Gold Tiger mobilized the regular army, the volunteers, and the surrendered troops of the Qin Fengshuai Division and the Liangxing Pacification Division, totaling more than 60,000 people, to prepare to launch a counteroffensive in the areas of Qishan County, Yixian County, and Fufeng County in Fengxiang Mansion. And on this matter, report to the Sichuan Shaanxi Xuanfu Division in Mianzhou, Sichuan.

In late October, all troops arrived in the designated area. At this time, there was chaos in the Kim and South Korean coalition forces. After Li Cheng and other generals defected, Chi Zhanhui was furious and deprived Han Chang of his command. After dealing with the relevant personnel with an iron fist, and the more than a dozen Korean generals who participated in the defection and failed to succeed were executed, and the situation was temporarily stabilized, Chi Zhanhui detected that there were signs of reinforcements in Fengxiang Mansion. He immediately determined that the Western Army would launch a counteroffensive in Fengxiang and take advantage of the turmoil of the coalition forces.

At this time, he still had nearly 100,000 troops in his hands, but Chi Zhanhui thought to himself, although the coalition army was numerous, but the morale of the army was shaken, and if he fought with the Western army in this situation, he was not sure of victory. Although he had never fought against the Western Army before, he had also heard that the Tiger Army was not only good at defending cities, but also good at field warfare. The terrain around Zhu Jiguan was not open, and it was difficult for the Jin army to fully exert itself, so after repeated considerations, he led the army to retreat dozens of miles to the east.

Han Chang, who had lost his command, was sober at this time, and he did not forget to remind Chi Zhanhui that the morale of the coalition forces was extremely low now, while the morale of the Western Army was greatly boosted because of the success of the defense, and it was not suitable for a battle at this time. It is better to return to Jingzhao Mansion and make plans after rectifying the troops.

However, Chi Zhanhui thought that Han Chang was a sign of cowardice, and he judged that since the Western Army dared to counterattack, it would inevitably gather the main force. If the Jin army can defeat the Western Army in this battle, then it will once again repeat the great Jiema Wu of Dunzhou led by Yelu Ma Wu through this great victory, and seize Jingzhao Yifu and Fang Ning Yao Prefecture, then if he wins again, Qin Feng will inevitably fall, Xihe will be at his fingertips, and Shukou will be completely exposed This temptation is too great

In order to confuse the Western Army, and to ensure that the Korean army that could not get on the stage would not add to the chaos, he ordered Han Chang to lead tens of thousands of Korean troops to retreat to Jingzhao Mansion in a big way, threatening to return to the east. But he secretly led the main force of the Jin army to Fufeng County, placed the troops north of Yongshui, opened his bloody mouth, and waited for the western army to arch forward.

There are many rivers in Fengxiang, and the Yongshui is in the north of Weishui, originating in the city of Fengxiang Fucheng, and the western part of the Guanzhong Plain is sandwiched together with Weishui. Chi Zhanhui placed the troops in the north of Yongshui, just waiting for the western army to go deeper.

On October 20, Yang Yan and Zhang Xian and others led 30,000 elite horse infantry troops of the two divisions of Qin Fengxi River out of Fucheng and marched southeast to the area of Qishan, where they reconnoitred and confirmed that the Jin-Han coalition army retreated eastward. At this time, as the commander of Qin Feng's handsome division, Yang Yan held 7,000 horsemen in his hand alone, and he had never been so arrogant as he is now, so he intended to chase after him to the east

But Zhang Xian strongly objected, and used the lesson of the disastrous defeat in Dunzhou to persuade Yang Yan not to move here first, and to find out the situation clearly. Although this time it is not like the last time when more than 100,000 main forces of the Western Army were mobilized, the elites of Qin Fengxi and the two divisions were here, and if they failed, the consequences would be unimaginable. The Department of Preparation and Placement has also repeatedly emphasized that it is not seeking miraculous achievements, but seeking stability.

At the same time, Xu Hong led the main force of the Liangxing Pacification Division and the Wu Xuan Division of Qin Fengshuai Division out of Zhuji Pass and traveled to Yixian, where they also reconnoitred the eastward retreat of the coalition forces. On the shore of Weishui, on the vast plain, there were countless ordnance and materials scattered, obviously the other party had a premonition that the western army was going to counterattack, so they retreated in a hurry.

However, Xu Hong lacked cavalry in his hands and did not dare to pursue rashly, so he sent people north to contact Yang Yan and Zhang Xian in order to coordinate the battle.

By October 23, he was worried that his whereabouts would be exposed and he would be attacked by the two western armies, so he had to withdraw from Fufeng and continue to retreat eastward to Wugong County, the westernmost part of Jingzhao Prefecture. Lure the Western Army to come and face off head-on.

Yang Yan and other generals faithfully implemented Xu Wei's policy, even if there are fighters, they must be cautious. When Chi Zhanhui retreated from his violent whereabouts to Wugong, they did not pursue.

Yidian Town

Since the last time it was looted, the town had been badly damaged, and when Yang Yan led his army to this point, all he saw was a charred ruin, and there was not half of the people. He stationed his troops outside the town and joined forces with Xu Hong, Xu Sheng, Wu Lan and other generals. Discuss the march together.

In the big tent of the Chinese army, Yang Yan sat on the top with the dignity of the capital system, and at the bottom, more than a dozen generals were neatly draped, and they sat down according to the military rank.

Xu Hong, Xu Sheng, and Wu Lan rushed in, and when Yang Yan saw it, he got up and hugged his fists and said: "Fourth Brother Xu, Fifth Brother Xu, Tang Qing." ”

"Yang Dutong." The three generals returned the salute, Yang Yan asked them to sit down, and then lifted the helmet, threw it on the handsome case, and said loudly, "Everyone is here, let's start." At this point, he walked to the map rack and pointed to the west end of Jingzhao Mansion and said, "According to the detective, the enemy army has withdrawn to the Wugong area and stopped, it seems that they are planning to wait for us to go, set up a formation, and face each other head-on." This battle, whether to fight it or not, how to fight it, you may wish to speak freely. ”

Xu Hong stroked his bare hair under his chin and muttered: "It is believed that the enemy army withdrew in two batches. The first batch to evacuate was mostly the Korean army, and the Jin army wanted to wait for us north of Yongshui, but unfortunately we didn't go. Seeing that there was no chance to speak of, the Jin army withdrew to Wugong and planned to start a battle. Yang Dutong, I don't know what the current strength of our army is? ”

Yang Yan waved his hand, and a prepared envoy of his own Shuai Division replied: "Right now, the troops of Qin Feng Shuai, Xihe Shuai, and Liangxing Pacification Division, a total of 42,000 Mabu Zheng Army, and 13,000 troops such as Li Cheng, plus Qin Feng's Yiyong Township Soldiers, the total strength is more than 64,000. ”

"Sixty-four? In terms of troops, it is enough to fight with the Jin army. But I have to take into account that these 64,000 troops, from all walks of life and divisions, how to coordinate with each other is a problem, but the Jin army is not. Xu Hong cautiously stated his attitude.

"Not without reason." Yang Yan nodded and admitted.

Xu Sheng pondered for a long time, and then said, "I think it's better to be safe." If we go, if we win, we may not be able to swallow Jingzhao Mansion, and if we lose, Qin Feng will be in danger and repeat the incident of Dunzhou. My personal opinion, still not go. ”

Zhang Xian took over the conversation: "I agree with Xu An's opinion, and the Department of Restraint and Shuai Si have emphasized several times that this time to resist the enemy is to seek stability. Now that the enemy is unable to hold the pass, it will cause civil strife and retreat, and our army's goal has been achieved, and there is really no need to risk entering the army. ”

Yang Yan listened to the opinions of the generals and asked loudly, "Is there anything else?" That's what it means? ”

The generals watched each other, and none of them advocated attacking. It is not that these heroes of the Western Army were defeated by the defeat of Dunzhou, but from the perspective of the overall situation, Shaanxi and the Western Army are still in the recovery stage, although there is some improvement, but there is still a considerable gap compared with the heyday. We finally accumulated a little strength, if we let go, in case of defeat, Shaanxi will be finished. Weighing the pros and cons, it's really not cost-effective. Let's go back to our posts, live in the city passes, and continue to recuperate, waiting for the times to change.

Seeing this situation, Yang Yan, as the supreme commander of the front, was speechless for a while. This was the first time he had commanded a large corps, and he was not stage frightened, and he was ambitious to build miraculous feats. But now the Jurchens didn't give him a chance, and they withdrew all the way to the territory of Jingzhao Mansion. If you chase it, no one will dare to win, but again, no one will be able to lose.

Brother Jiu often said that for a general, you must avoid utilitarianism, and every time you make a decision, you must start from the battle situation, and you must not mix personal selfishness and political considerations. Our main task this time is to defend, and now the goal has been achieved, and the counterattack on eastern Shaanxi and the recovery of lost territory are not among the considerations for this use of troops, and the conditions are not ripe, for the sake of prudence, it is better not to take this risk.

As soon as he thought of this, he made a final decision: "If I can't do it, I will immediately report this matter to the Department of Governance, and listen to the final judgment of the Minister of Governance."

In late October, Yang Yan asked Qinzhou's Department of Preparation and Command, Xu Wei supported his decision, and gave instructions, Yang Yan, Zhang Xian, Yao Bilong, etc., returned to the city, Xu Sheng and Wu Lan were still stationed in Zhuji Pass, Xu Hong led the army back to Dasanguan, Li Cheng Liangxing and other generals, led the troops north to Weishui, entered Fengxiang Mansion, and waited for the reorganization and appointment.

Chizhan Hui, who was sharpening his sword in martial arts, saw the Western Army poking his head out and looking at it a few times, and then shrank back, so he was not disappointed. But there was nothing to do, so he could only reorganize the troops in Jingzhao Mansion and find fighters again.

At this point, the Shaanxi battlefield has temporarily calmed down. In Huanqing, Zhang Jun was beaten in the heart by Xu Yuan's old punch, and he couldn't slow down for a while. In Qinfeng's territory, Han Chang lost tens of thousands of troops, but he couldn't advance half a step. Chi Zhanhui tried his best, but the Western Army returned the same way.

How do you look at this, this time Song and Han fought in Shaanxi, and the Jin army and the Korean army did not get any benefits. The guiding ideology of the Western Army is very clear, that is, relying on the city pass to hold on, and the enemy will be consumed to the greatest extent. Even the Hu'er Army, which was the best at field warfare in the Western Army, gave up the opportunity to fight the Jin Army in the plains and retreated to the defensive line "conservatively".

But obviously, the war could not end like this, this time the Song army used troops, although it was picked by the puppet Han, the Jin army only cooperated. But in Shaanxi, the Jin army used 60,000, which is not a small amount in any period, and the 60,000 Jin army can't gnaw on a Fengxiang Mansion, how can the Jurchens be willing?