After several days of sunny weather, the snow had melted. Outside Youzhou City, a group of nimble knights were galloping around the city half a mile away from the city wall. The man in the middle was the Great Zhou Emperor Guo Shao.
The big horse with black and shiny fur ran very fast with ease, as if it was just having fun on the flat ground. The strong warhorse brought the speed of the wind, and Guo Shao felt the warmth and moisture of spring on his face. Beside him were his two sworn brothers Yang Biao and Luo Mengzi, who were in their prime and brave and strong, which made Guo Shao feel at ease.
The sky and earth are very vivid. The blue sky is like the sea, and the white clouds are pure and flawless. The spring grass on the ground is not obvious when you look closely, but as long as you look far away, you can see the tender green on the field.
The brand new nature and the old city walls with mottled brown bricks and stones seem to be telling the story of time.
Guo Shao was dressed in a strong suit, wearing armor and a red cloak that fluttered in the wind. He looked high-spirited and ready to do something big.
Here, Hebei is one of the basic territories of Kyushu. Now Guo Shao is galloping here recklessly, watching the city and siege fortifications.
The cavalry galloped past the southern tower. Guo Shao saw a man on the tower, surrounded by people, looking over here. He guessed for a moment that it might be Xiao Siwen, the King of the Southern Court.
At this time, countless people gathered inside and outside Youzhou City, but the atmosphere was very strange and there was no communication between the two sides.
The gates of the city were closed, and the Liao army was completely retreating inside. They did not take the initiative to attack, and they could not reach the city with practical long-range weapons. The Zhou army built siege works, but they were not ready yet, and they did not attack the city. For many days, the two hostile armies gathered only a stone's throw away, but they seemed to be able to coexist.
If no one tried to persuade them to surrender, it would be a miracle if the Liao army in the Southern Court of Liao would surrender.
No one yelled or provoked, because ordinary soldiers couldn't understand each other at all, and they wouldn't know what you were saying even if you yelled at the top of your lungs.
Guo Shao rode his horse around the city, but still did not send anyone near the city, and returned directly to the central army camp. He entered the tent and strode to the map on it.
At this time, all the generals handed in their weapons and walked into the tent to pay their respects.
Guo Shao turned around and said, "No need to be polite." Then he looked at Wang Pu.
Wang Pu stood up and bowed, then turned to face the tent door and said: The following is the news from the government. The first batch of Liao army reinforcements to Shangjing was dispatched ten days ago, with a total strength of more than 35,000 cavalry. Their current whereabouts are unknown, but they are expected to enter Hebei within five days.
This was the first batch of reinforcements, and the Liao army could dispatch far more cavalry than this number. The Qianying Military Office estimated that the Liao army could dispatch more than 100,000 Khitan Xi cavalry in the later period, and the number of vassal tribes was difficult to estimate.
Wang Pu paused and said: Therefore, the Great Zhou army should find an opportunity to defeat the first batch of Liao army reinforcements during the siege, or at least block and contain them outside Youzhou City.
In compliance with the order of His Majesty, the military order of the Youzhou Front Camp Military Headquarters is as follows:
Wang Pu pointed to a situation map hanging on a wooden frame on one side. On the right, Li Chuyun, the chief inspector of the Palace Front Department, was the commander-in-chief, Shi Yanchao was the vanguard, and he led 28,000 cavalrymen of the Palace Front Department's second army, the Crane and Huben cavalry. On the left, Han Tong, the commander-in-chief of the Imperial Guards' Horse and Infantry Department, was the commander-in-chief, Luo Yanhuan was the vanguard, and he led 25,000 cavalrymen of the Imperial Guards' Horse and Infantry Department's second army, the Longjie Army, the left and right wings, and the Hujie Army's left wing.
The main force of the Zhou army's imperial cavalry was a total of 53,000 cavalry, and all of their elite cavalry were deployed to deal with the reinforcements from the north; because cavalry was not needed for sieges, the Huben army's cavalry infantry was also mobile and could be used as infantry and barely as cavalry, and could be used as a temporary reserve.
The total strength of the Huben Army and the left and right wings was 40,000, half of which were cavalry, and the rest were infantry equipped with mounts. They were the best troops in the Zhou army; the cavalry of the Control Crane Army was about 8,000. Li Chuyun led these mobile forces.
The Longjie Army was under the Imperial Guard Cavalry Division, and had a high proportion of cavalry, about 20,000 cavalry; the left wing of the Hujie Army was mainly composed of infantry, and each army could gather 5,000 cavalry. Han Tong's army was composed of these cavalry.
The elite cavalry of the Great Zhou Dynasty totaled more than 50,000, which was the result of Guo Shao's continuous development of military equipment after he came to power. Because it was really expensive to raise cavalry in the Central Plains, and there were not many good horses.
However, there were a lot of infantry. Together with Liu Renzhan, Gao Yanchou and other troops, the Zhou army had more than 100,000 infantry.
Wang Pu pointed at the map and said: This is Youzhou. The line to the south is the Sanggan River. The diagonal line to the north is the Wenyu River, and these are tributaries. The northwest area is Xishan. The closest route for the Liao army is to go through Beikou Gubeikou, passing Yanshan from the northeast and heading south, so the elite troops on the right are placed in the direction of Beikou.
General Li's right wing should lead his troops across the Wenyu River and advance deep into the north to extend the depth between the front line and Youzhou.
Wang Pu took two steps sideways and continued: "Since the right route goes deep into the north, we must prevent the Liao army from bypassing from the west mountain and attacking our siege army. Therefore, General Han's headquarters must operate near the abandoned Deshengkou of Juyongguan."
There are two strategies for the left route. One is to guard against the Liao army moving south from the West Mountain. Second, if it is confirmed that the main force of the Liao army is in the direction of Beikou in the east, most of the troops on the left route should be immediately transferred eastward across the Wenyu River, waiting for an opportunity near the river bank to form a north-south response with the east route.
The four generals came out together, clasped their fists and said: "We obey your order."
After Wang Pu finished his deployment, Guo Shao and others spoke: Within a month and a half, the Great Zhou army will take the initiative and have superior military strength. You should be determined to win.
We must also be able to see through opportunities and respond to situations on the spot. As long as we can explain the reasonable motivation for the decision after the war, we can make decisions on the spot; as long as it is beneficial to the overall situation and the result is a win, it is not a crime to disobey the order in this battle. We cannot act rigidly and rigidly, victory is the only goal
All the generals clasped their fists in thanks.
Guo Shao said solemnly: This battle has far-reaching implications, and great achievements will be made at this time. I hope all the generals will work together to kill the enemy.
Everyone said excitedly: "We are willing to sacrifice our lives to serve Your Majesty as a pioneer."
Guo Shao waved his hand, and the generals thanked him and left. Then a general walked out of the tent and said, "Call the rest of the generals to come in and discuss matters."
Another group of generals formed two columns and strode into the tent one after another.
Guo Shao still deployed troops with the ministers of the Front Camp Military Office, mainly deploying the reserve troops for the siege strategy. These generals will stay in Youzhou City to attack the city.
The Zhou army had besieged Youzhou City half a month ago, but they had hardly fired a single arrow. They were preparing to build fortifications to surround the city so that Xiao Siwen would not have the opportunity to leave the city and cause trouble. They were also waiting for the subsequent infantry and artillery supplies to be transported to Youzhou City.
In the big tent, maps were hung on wooden frames one after another, and Guo Shao and his ministers discussed from the afternoon to the evening. Besieging a city is a complicated project, but so far it is very clear, organized, detailed and practical.
All preparations were running efficiently, and heavy artillery, stone shells and other supplies were being transported at the right time and had already arrived at the front line.