In early May, when we heard that the main force of the Khitan soldiers was coming, the Zhou army was placing its lines in the wilderness in the northern part of the Zhuo River to wait for labor.

Guo Shao's cavalry was located in the rear army in the middle, and it seemed that he could not participate in the war... because he led was not the main force of the cavalry, and the first main force of the cavalry was the Iron Cavalry under Zhao Kuangyin; then the squads were the direct.

At that time, Chai Rong rode a horse in the middle, and the generals gathered together temporarily by the emperor. Chai Rong rode on a high horse and looked around the generals and said, "The Northern Expedition is here! This victory will lead to the entire land of the secluded clouds. Please encourage us!"

The generals bid farewell one after another and rode their horses away from the central army and returned to the barracks.

When Guo Shao returned to the army, several generals of the Hujie Army gathered to speak, and he had to say, "Let's wait for the result behind."

After several years of preparation and the vigorous Northern Expedition, Guo Shao finally came to the most critical step. But Guo Shao did not need to bear any responsibility in this battle; this kind of field battle was the home court of the cavalry, and in the emperor's heart he seemed to be using it to attack the city.

Everyone had to get off the horse and waited in a row in order to save horsepower. The horse's hooves roared in front of them, and countless war horses were mobilizing. From a distance, Guo Shao felt as if he had arrived in the African plains and countless wild beasts were migrating.

The sound of fighting came from afar, but I couldn't see where the battlefield was. It seemed that there were fighting everywhere in the north.

In the afternoon, countless wounded soldiers, chariots and horses were transported back from the main road, and the battle situation should be very fierce. A large number of cavalry near the central army did not move all day. In the evening, Guo Shao received an order and the various routes were approaching the Zhuo River to camp.

That night, he and other generals arrived at the Central Army camp again. Two generals were injured. One of them was wrapped with a white cloth hanging on his arm. It should be Zhang Guanghan, the commander of the left wing of Long Jie Army, and Guo Shao was not familiar with him.

Zhang Yongde made a statement: "In today's battle, the Liao army is still in strength. The two wings attack our army at the same time. Advance and retreat are in moderation, and there is no way to take advantage of the situation... The Liao army has more cavalry than us, and it may not be better if we continue to fight for a long time."

Zhao Kuangyin and others had no intention of fighting, and everyone did not rush to fight, and the morale could be seen from the atmosphere.

Chai Rong's face was very bad, as if he was angry. He blamed the generals for not having to take their lives and wanted to lead the cavalry to fight tomorrow. Shi Yanchao immediately asked for the battle to fight the vanguard, and Chai Rong followed his request.

The next morning, the two armies fought again. Shi Yanchao led the cavalry from the middle road to attack the Liao army formation and entered the enemy camp. He saw that the Liao cavalry on the plains were like a vast ocean; the Liao army's front army could not block Shi Yanchao, so he detoured and cut off his retreat.

Most of the Zhou army's Iron Cavalry, the Crane Control Army, and the Hujie Army were forced to take the initiative from the left and right wings to prevent Shi Yanchao's troops from falling into the siege and rushing back and forth until dusk. In the end, Shi Yanchao's subordinates lost more than half, almost lost their combat effectiveness, and returned in vain.

That night, Guo Shao and other generals were summoned to the Central Army camp. Chai Rong's expression was already very depressed, and it was difficult to describe his expression... It seemed that he had grown ten years old all of a sudden.

Chai Rong made a quick decision and ordered the rear army to retreat south of Zhuoshui early tomorrow morning. He also ordered Guo Shao and Zhang Guanghan's troops to return to Zhuozhou and Gu'an to deploy defense along the Zhuoshui coast; let them support the army and block the Liao army's pursuers.

The situation is already very bad. It seems that the Great Zhou and the Liao army have not had any good intentions in the decisive battle, and there is no hope of winning... Otherwise, with Chai Rong's mood, he would definitely not be willing to give up.

The next morning, Guo Shao joined Zhang Guanghan, the left-wing chief of Long Jie Army, and left the battlefield first, crossed the Zhuo River directly, led his army to build camps on the river bank, and lined up to deploy troops to wait.

As expected, at night that day, there were suddenly groups of horse soldiers rushing from the wilderness to the north. It was the main retreating force of the Zhou army. The Zhou army seemed to have taken the opportunity to leave the battlefield when the Liao army retreated... They were all horsemen, and the baggage and vehicles were gone, and most of them were probably thrown away.

...

After the various troops crossed the Zhuo River, the elite troops of the Guards on the river bank were stationed, and their troops were slightly relieved. The troops stationed all over the Zhuo River bank, and the camps continued to reach Qigou Pass.

When they retreated and fled in a hurry, the troops caused chaos and the morale among the troops was depressed for a while. However, the Zhou Dynasty did not suffer any losses. It occupied a lot of places and the main force did not suffer any major losses.

That night, I didn't hear any news of the Liao army's pursuit. It was too late, and the generals ordered camping on the spot to rest, so as not to cause greater chaos if the light was not good.

In the large tent of the Iron Cavalry Army, Zhao Kuangyin asked the generals to return to their subordinates. The aide Zhao Pu did not leave, and sat on one side without saying a word, with an expression that seemed to have something to say. Kuangyin then stood back and talked with him at night.

"It's a pity that the Northern Expedition is not a fault for not working hard. There is really no good opportunity to make a breakthrough." Zhao Kuangyin said first.

Zhao Pu said in a deep voice: "My lord is not the time to take charge of the Northern Expedition... It is already difficult for the official to ride a horse today. I can only cross the Zhuo River if I endure it."

At that time, Zhao Kuangyin and others were not around the emperor, and they couldn't help but sigh in doubt.

Zhao Pu said: "After the troops passed the Zhuo River, they were afraid that the Liao army would come to chase them all night, so they tried their best to run south. However, the officials stopped on the river bank, and I guess they just couldn't run..."

Zhao Kuangyin had no words.

"Guo Shao has a deep grudge with the Zhao family. He is the Queen Fu's family and married the Queen's sister. Therefore, Queen Fu and the lord are not the same person." Zhao Pu whispered, his head wearing a head was shining with candles, and the shadows were cast on the tent. In the dim light, it seemed that ghosts were shaking, and the atmosphere was very gloomy.

He continued: "The lord is a general in command of the army in front of the palace and must not be trusted by the queen. The situation in the future is in danger and must be observed."

Zhao Kuangyin still remained silent. Zhao Pu didn't need to say these joints, and he had already known them. He just had no choice but to use them for a moment.

At this moment, Zhao Pu said, "I have a plan. Didn't Guo Shao lead the Hujie Army to guard the Zhuo River on the left wing? The lord can join the clerk's house and let Guo Shao stay in Zhuozhou for the reason of occupying the bridgehead north of the Juma River and not let him return to Beijing."

When Zhao Kuangyin heard this, he became interested immediately. He didn't say anything just now and immediately said, "There is no danger to Zhuozhou, and it won't take long to defend it."

Zhao Pu said: "The Zhou army has not lost much strength, and it has not been too long to go to the expedition. I guess the official family is still unwilling to accept it, but now the army has no desire to fight and will not continue the northern expedition for the time being... But he must still be thinking about Youzhou in his heart.

The lord can make a suggestion, and retreat for the time being. After our imperial guards have a little rest, we will choose a good opportunity to advance north for the second time. The officials will be very happy to hear that the lord supports his Northern Expedition! At this time, you said that Zhuozhou can be defended first, which can directly threaten Youzhou to reduce the troubles of the second Northern Expedition. Most officials will listen to you."

Zhao Pu's voice became smaller and smaller, and he whispered: "The one that the queen is blocked by the imperial guards is Guo Shao, who is married to the Fu family. As long as Guo Shao is not in Tokyo, the situation will be beneficial or harmless to us; no matter what we plan to do in the future, we must be much more calm."

Zhao Kuangyin nodded slightly, and suddenly felt that Zhao Pu had a good idea... This method has a very low cost and almost no need to take risks; it can also remove the firewood from the bottom of the pot, which is indeed a clever plan!

The staff said nothing wrong. Before, Zhao Kuangyin and Zhang Yongde advised the emperor not to advance rashly, in order to cherish the military strength of the Zhou Dynasty, but it was difficult for the emperor to persuade the Northern Expedition to be devoted to the Northern Expedition. This time, if he expressed his attitude to support the Second Northern Expedition, his generals would make such a statement, the emperor would definitely be happy.
Chapter completed!