At the gate of a courtyard outside the imperial city of Jinyang, someone shouted: The emperor has arrived. Then suddenly there was a short voice: "Calling," and two rows of soldiers in armor and armed with sharp weapons stepped forward and raised their spears.
Guo Shao held his sword and strode towards the door. Suddenly he found that the postures and expressions of his bodyguards were very strange. Unlike the usual requirements of holding their heads high and chests out, each of them seemed to bend over. They all looked at him secretly with awe on their faces.
He took a quick glance and walked into the lobby, sitting down in the upper seat.
The civil and military officials on both sides stood up from their chairs and kowtowed: "Long live your majesty!"
"Get up." Guo Shao said casually as usual, raised his hand upwards, and said, "Sit down, everyone sit down and talk."
Guo Shao reached out and touched his forehead, then looked around. There were more than a dozen people there, including civil servants from the front camp military office and senior military generals. He immediately regained his seriousness and sharpness as when he was doing things, speaking clearly, concisely and quickly.
After the capture of Jinyang, the battle for the Northern Han Kingdom was already won. The current situation, Xiang Gong reported to the east that the Youzhou army retreated to the northeast; Li Chuyun reported to the north that the Liao army retreated to the north of Xinkou and stationed. After Guo Shao finished speaking, he glanced around and stopped his gaze on Wang Pu's face.
Wang Pu bowed slightly, not daring to look Guo Shao in the eye. He looked at the ground and clasped his fists, saying: This old minister has thought of two plans.
Guo Shao hurriedly said: "You can speak as you please, Envoy Wang."
Wang Pu said: First, persuade them to surrender. Explain the righteousness and advantages and disadvantages to the garrisons of the Northern Han Kingdom, including Xinzhou, and ask them to surrender. The Northern Han Kingdom has been destroyed, and even Jinyang cannot stop the Great Zhou army. The cities have neither elite soldiers nor strong cities. If they resist stubbornly, they will only be destroyed. There is no other way but to surrender to the Great Zhou.
Second, confrontation. The Liao army guarded the northern pass, so the Great Zhou did not need to attack by force, but only needed to confront and consume. After Xinzhou surrendered, Li Chuyun's troops could occupy the city, and the rear could send food and supplies nearby, so it would not have any impact if they spent a year or two. The Liao army was different. The land north of Xinkou was even more barren and food and grass were scarce. The army had no place to eat, and looting Daizhou and other places would easily cause resistance from local Han generals. They had to get supplies from the Liao Kingdom thousands of miles away. The Liao people had a lot of war horses, and horses were more edible than people. They had to rely on food supplies when they left the grassland, which was very expensive. They could not confront us for a long time, so they had to withdraw their troops to the north or attack from the south.
The Liao Kingdom is internally unstable and is not yet prepared for a long-term war with our Great Zhou. Jinyang has fallen into our hands, so there is no need for the Liao army to move south. Moreover, even if Yelu Xiu'ge moves south, the Great Zhou can at worst fight him with Jinyang and remain invincible.
So we just need to wait and see and consume food and grass. I think it is only a matter of time before the Liao army withdraws. By then, the Great Zhou will surrender without bloodshed, recapture Daizhou and other places, and occupy the entire Hedong area.
Guo Shao agreed with Wang Pu's plan and said:
Wang Pudao: According to your majesty's order, I will issue a military order to Li Chuyun later with the order of the military government.
Guo Shao's current military and political procedures are very centralized and lack checks and balances, but they are very efficient. For example, when Wang Pu brought up a military and national event like this, Guo Shao's attitude was very clear, and he didn't even need to listen to other people's opinions. He could make a decision on the spot and immediately implement it through the Shogunate Front Camp Military Office. This system is very useful in wartime, but its drawbacks are also obvious. If the monarch's control is insufficient, and Wang Pu wants to use public power for personal gain, it will be too easy. The Privy Councilor during the reign of Zhou Taizu had too much power and lacked checks and balances, and wanted to blackmail Taizu.
Guo Shao also believed that after the fall of Jinyang City, there was no need for large-scale battles. Sometimes he felt that war was a kind of momentum, and everyone would follow the trend. Just as Wang Pu judged, the enemy and the remnants of the Northern Han would follow the trend.
At this time, Wang Pu looked at the generals again and said: "The Great Zhou army is not afraid of the Liao army, but now we are fighting with the Liao army in Hedong, and we can't get any results or benefits. Hedong is already in our hands, and we can't expand our territory through a war; the Liao army has also controlled the Xinkou and Yanmen passes, and they are mainly cavalry, so even if we win, it will be difficult to gain much."
If there is no profit in a war, the best option is not to fight. If you want to fight against the Liao army, it is better to choose Youzhou.
All the generals were immediately moved after hearing this, and they began to talk among themselves for a while.
Wang Pu added: “Didn’t I say that we should attack Youzhou now? The Northern Expedition will take years to prepare.”
Guo Shao was eager to make a move. He had served in the Zhou army's imperial guards since the late emperor ascended the throne. Thinking back to the Battle of Gaoping, the emperor led the main force of the imperial guards in person. Although they won the battle with the Northern Han army, it was a difficult victory and they almost suffered a crushing defeat at the beginning. Now, the field battle between Bai Gu and Yang Ye, as well as the capture of Jinyang, were all going very smoothly. Guo Shao could not help but think that the current Zhou army's imperial guards had greatly improved their combat effectiveness compared to a few years ago.
Recovering the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun is a tempting feat for any ruler in the Central Plains.
However, when the previous emperor was fighting in the north, Guo Shao also realized the strength of the Liao army in the southern part of Youzhou.
At this time, Wang Pu submitted another memorial, which was a detailed report on the post-war settlement of the Northern Han Kingdom, the garrison of the people, etc. Guo Shao was not too concerned. On the one hand, he believed that Wang Pu and others could handle these matters. On the other hand, his attention was attracted by a greater temptation at this time, which was Youzhou.
Guo Shao took a general look at the main garrison matters. Wang Pu suggested that the surrendered soldiers in Jinyang should be transferred from Longcheng, and then troops should be drawn from the inland to garrison Jinyang City, and the military power should be divided and the civil officials appointed by the court should take charge of the main power. The Jinyang garrison was only for defense and no longer had the responsibility of sending troops to attack.
Guo Shao probably agreed with Wang Pu's proposal, which was mainly to weaken Jinyang's military capabilities. The city was very majestic and could be used for both attack and defense. If it was allowed to grow stronger, it would be difficult to control. After weakening, the control of the Hedong area would be taken back. Jinyang could not control the surrounding areas, so it could not obtain resources to grow stronger.
The generals talked about some specific things. Guo Shao slapped his hand on the chair and stood up: Today's meeting ends here. Envoy Wang and Zuo You follow me into the back hall, and the others disperse.
Everyone also bowed and stood in the hall, saying: Farewell, Your Majesty.
Guo Shao summoned Wang Pu and two others to discuss privately and asked them to help judge the possibility of recovering the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun.
Wang Pu reminded: The victory in Jinyang was unexpected, but Youzhou is not Jinyang. We must not be complacent with the victory and must not underestimate the strength of the Liao Kingdom.
Guo Shao nodded seriously and said humbly: Envoy Wang is right in reminding me.
Wang Pu was a man who was very particular about his words. He usually didn't flatter. He would always say some blunt words that were unpleasant to the ears, but those blunt words didn't make Guo Shao angry. Instead, he felt a sense of closeness to him. Moreover, Guo Shao speculated that if something went wrong, Wang Pu had left a way out for himself. After all, he had already reminded his superiors, and as an important minister assisting the king, he had not failed in his duty.