Wei Fufeng called the fifth uncle aside and said with some respect: "I also ask the fifth uncle to wipe out the bandits as soon as possible and absorb the bandits to expand the Jincheng Army."

"That's natural. To tell you the truth, I was defeated in the attack on Baiyun Village, and now I'm going to capture the more than a thousand bandits." The fifth uncle raised his eyebrows and spoke bitterly.

Wei Fufeng nodded and told him the strategy to deal with Yang Fugong. If it was successful, Yang Fugong's forces in Hanzhong would probably attack Jinzhou.

The fifth uncle was surprised when he heard this, nodded to express his understanding, and immediately led his army back to Jinzhou overnight to suppress the bandits and strengthen the army.

...

In the city of Jinzhou, where the military headquarters of the recruiting envoy was located, not long after Zhang Jun, the recruiting envoy, sent away Sun Kui.

Sun Kui led an army of 10,000 to Luzhou, including 5,000 of his original troops.

When Li Ding arrived, Zhang Jun allocated 5,000 troops and went to Shizhou to replace Sun Kui.

A few days later, Li Xian's fast-horse messenger arrived at Jinzhou to summon the envoy's army and presented Li Xian's letter. When he heard that he was Li Xian's son, Zhang Jun could not take it lightly and read the letter immediately.

After reading the letter, Zhang Jun's face was gloomy and uncertain. The suggestions in the letter were deeply in his heart. He was just wondering why it was Li Ding's son who urgently wrote the suggestions. But he soon understood. Li Ding came to Hedong and his son cared about him.

Naturally, we don’t want the army in Hedong to be unfavorable.

Zhang Jun thought about it and wrote a letter to be rushed to Chang'an and handed over to the emperor. The letter borrowed the name suggested by Li Ding. As prime minister and envoy, he only stated that he seconded the proposal to avoid being suspected of being good at military and wielding power.

After the messenger left, Zhang Jun sent another letter to Sun Kui, explaining the reason and asking Sun Kui to wait for two days on the way or return to Chang'an. If His Majesty refused, Sun Kui would turn around and continue to Luzhou.

Sun Kui received the letter on the way and believed that it was more important to eradicate Yang Fugong, mainly because he could take over the military supply operation in the rear, which was the basis for the imperial military's victory in Hedong, so Sun Kui ordered to turn around and go back.

Sun Kui's U-turn made Li Cunxiao, the first brave general in Hedong, almost vomit blood in frustration. He suffered heavy losses in the ambush at Shilou Mountain and lost most of his close cavalry.

After learning that the "enemy" Sun Kui was going to Luzhou to take office, he mobilized a thousand cavalry to ambush in the Daohuang Ridge area. Not wanting to see the enemy in ambush, he suddenly turned around and went back.

...

In Daming Palace and Yanying Hall, Zhaozong frowned and walked around the hall, weighing his concerns. He held Zhang Jun's letter in his hand.

Zhang Jun stated that the soldiers in Hedong were not fully fed, their morale was low, and there were traitors colluding with the Hedong army, so they were afraid that the war would be unfavorable.

Zhang Jun said that the generals of the 5,000-strong army led by Sun Kui had basically eliminated Yang Fugong's party members. He could return to the army to deter Yang Fugong's party members in Chang'an City. He asked the emperor to deprive Yang Fugong of his military power, cut off the reliance of internal thieves, and allow the supply of military supplies in the rear.

Sun Kui is in charge.

"It seems feasible." Zhaozong made a decision. The return of five thousand troops gave him the courage to deprive Yang Fugong of his military power.

The emperor ordered Sun Kui to return to the army, and appointed Xu Yanruo as the military governor of the Zhaoyi Army. He rushed to Hedong to lead the army. Xu Yanruo's official position was the Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs, and his ancestors were all important ministers of the Tang Dynasty.

The emperor's imperial edict arrived in the Hedong area and encountered Sun Kui's army in Wenxi County, Jiangzhou.

After receiving the imperial edict, Sun Kui immediately accelerated his march back to Chang'an. Because he was returning to Chang'an, the morale of his five thousand soldiers was high, and they returned to Chang'an City in only five days.

Sun Kui took the imperial edict and led the army from Tonghua Gate

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After entering Chang'an City, he went directly to the Daming Palace, led his troops into Danfeng Gate, quickly took over the outer guards, and allowed 5,000 troops to enter the Daming Palace.

On the same day, Emperor Zhaozong promulgated an imperial edict, appointing Sun Kui as Jingzhao Yin. He was promoted to Minister of War, responsible for the security of Jingzhao Mansion, and took over the military supply operation with the official position of Deputy Envoy of Hedong Recruitment.

In addition, the many crimes of Privy Councilor Yang Fugong were made public to the court, and it was announced to the world that Yang Fugong was dismissed from the post of Privy Councilor and Lieutenant of Shence Army, and Yang Fugong was ordered to leave Chang'an City and serve as supervisor of the army in Fengxiang Mansion.

The emperor's deprivation of the military power of Privy Councilor Yang Fugong was like a thunderstorm on the ground, surprising and surprising many people. Some were happy, some were frightened, and some were watching calmly.

Many forces believe that Yang Fugong will not accept the dismissal honestly.

When he received the news of Yang Fugong's dismissal, Wei Fufeng acted quickly. He sent people to Bashu, Hanzhong, to spread the news of Yang Fugong's dismissal in time.

They also sent people to southern Sichuan to issue a war warning, telling the southern Sichuan army that Yang Shouliang was about to rebel against the court and might invade southern Sichuan. This boosted the fighting spirit of the southern Sichuan army and made the soldiers think that the attacking enemy army would not last long.

Jinzhou was also in action. The Jincheng Army, which received military support, began a turbulent war against bandits after returning. The sharp weapons made the Jincheng Army invincible.

In the first battle, Baiyun Village was captured, more than 300 bandits were killed, and thousands of prisoners were taken. More than 300 of the best were selected and recruited into the Jincheng Army, and the rest were sent to Xicheng County to register as citizens.

Until Yang Fugong was dismissed, the bandits in Jinzhou either surrendered or fled, resulting in an additional 10,000 naturalized "good citizens" in Jinzhou.

The Jincheng Army also expanded to 3,000 men. Uncle Wu was very good at winning over the morale of the army. He strictly enforced military discipline, rewarded bravery generously, and subsidized casualties generously.

Yang Fugong was dismissed from his post. In anger, he wrote a letter requesting to go home for retirement, and threatened the emperor to withdraw his life.

The emperor's response was to remove Yang Fugong from all official positions, leaving only the empty position of general.

Yang Fugong was so angry that he could only stay in the official residence of Zhaohuafang, seemingly accepting the emperor's reduction of military power.

Just when Yang Fugong was dismissed, the new military commander Xu Yanruo and the eunuch Han Guigui (eunuch) of the Zhaoyi Army arrived in Jinzhou.

The next day, he led 10,000 imperial troops to Luzhou to take office. Passing through the Daohuang Ridge area, he was ambushed by Li Cunxiao's cavalry who had been waiting for many days.

Facing the countless Hedong cavalry who raided, the 10,000-strong imperial army collapsed without a fight.

Seeing that the situation was not going well, Xu Yanruo, the military governor of the Zhaoyi Army, took off his purple robe and wore only thin scale armor. Under the protection of his guards, he fled among the defeated army. The supervisor, Han Standard, was captured.

Xu Yanruo fled back to Jinzhou with only a few hundred soldiers and wrote to the court to plead guilty.

Soon, the captured prisoner Han Guigui was released, brought back Li Keyong's letter of grievance, and returned to Chang'an from Jinzhou.

When Zhaozong received Li Keyong's letter of grievance, the main force of the Hedong Army defeated the Youzhou Jiedushi in the north. The Youzhou Jiedushi lost more than 10,000 elite troops and fled back to Youzhou in defeat.

When the main force of the Hedong Army returned to the south, Li Cunxiao, after annihilating 10,000 Zhaoyi troops, escorted the prisoners back to Taiyuan Prefecture, and then sent troops to fight the Xuanwu Army on the southern front. Together with General Kang Junli, they defeated the Xuanwu Army and captured thousands of Xuanwu Army.

And recaptured Luzhou.

In August and September, the war situation in Hedong changed rapidly and took a turn for the worse. After the Youzhou Army on the northern front and the Xuanwu Army on the southern front were defeated one after another, the main force of Li Keyong's Hedong Army also returned to Taiyuan Prefecture to repair three wars.

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Japanese troops sent troops to Shizhou.

Li Ding, who was guarding Shizhou, received a scout report. He was panic-stricken and didn't know what to make. He decided to join the military and withdraw to Hexi.

Li Ding was worried about withdrawing to Hexi and would be charged with deserting in the future, so he wanted to go south to Jinzhou.

His son Li Xian firmly opposed it and cited Xu Yanruo's example to warn his father that he would be attacked by the Hedong Army's cavalry on the way south, so it would be better to withdraw to Hexi and wait and see. Besides, the 5,000-strong army went to Jinzhou, which would have little impact on the strength of the imperial army.

Li Ding couldn't defeat his son, and was also shocked by Xu Yanruo's experience, so he withdrew 5,000 troops to Hexi.

In order to prevent the rebellion from getting out of control, Li Xian suggested that his father tell the soldiers to withdraw on the way back, which Li Ding accepted.

By the time the vanguard of the Hedong Army arrived in Lishi County, five thousand imperial troops had already crossed the Yellow River and were stationed in Suizhou on the west bank.

Li Keyong received the report and was surprised to ask which military attaches were among the five thousand troops. He did not believe that Li Ding knew military affairs, but he found no military attachés worth doubting.

In early October, Li Keyong led his troops to recapture the lost three eastern states, Xingzhou, Zizhou and Mingzhou, and completely defeated the invasion of Xuanwu Army and Zhu Wen. The main force finally moved to Fenzhou and began to target the imperial coalition troops stationed in Jinzhou.

.

In November, the weather in Hedong was cold. The imperial coalition forces received normal supplies of military rations, but their military morale was still low.

The recruitment put Zhang Jun in a dilemma after the defeat of the Xuanwu Army.

As a result, the day of march was delayed again and again.

Finally, the Hedong Army began to move after resting, and took the initiative to leave Fenzhou to attack Jinzhou. Zhang Jun had to send troops to fight, and the two armies started a battle at Yindi Pass.

As a result, the nearly 100,000 imperial coalition troops faced the charge of the army from Hedong, and soon panicked and collapsed.

When the two armies came into contact and fought, the five thousand Fengxiang Jiedushi Army on the flank suddenly retreated, followed by Han Jian's Huashang Jiedushi Army and Fenning Jiedushi Army also retreated.

The allied forces of the imperial court fell into a huge rout. Zhang Jun, the envoy of the imperial court, stared at the advancing Hedong army with a pale face.

The consequences of such a huge defeat were completely beyond his understanding, and the guards around him hurriedly helped Zhang Jun escape.

A crusade against Hedong that lasted for several months ended in a disastrous defeat for the imperial court. Zhang Jun fled Hedong with only a few hundred guards, while the other Jiedushi coalition forces crossed the Yellow River with little loss and returned to their respective vassal towns.

After receiving the news of the disastrous defeat of the imperial army, Li Ding, fearing for the future, led his army in Hexi and returned to Chang'an. On the way, he wrote a letter to plead guilty, saying that he should not be afraid of what happened to Xu Yanruo, and should go south to join Zhang Jun, the envoy to recruit him.

...

Daming Palace, Yanying Hall, although it is warm inside, the atmosphere is no less cold than outside.

Emperor Zhaozong was sitting on the throne, with a face as gloomy as ice. There were many important ministers lined up in the palace, with Prime Minister Du Rangneng at the top. They all had solemn faces, thinking about the difficult aftermath.

"We are defeated in Hedong. What are your countermeasures? Those who speak are not guilty." Zhaozong comforted and asked the courtiers to dare to speak. It means that although I am in a bad mood, I will not anger you.

Prime Minister Kong Wei came out and said respectfully: "Your Majesty, I have previously advocated a crusade against Hedong. Please punish the minor officials and alleviate the difficulties in Hedong."

Zhaozong nodded and said: "I know that the Qing family is loyal to the country, so I will temporarily return home to cultivate."

"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty." Kong Wei bowed down and bowed deeply, then turned and walked out.

(End of chapter)
Chapter completed!