Chapter 233: Attack one side, win over the other, defend against the other

As expected, after Hensheng's Northern Expeditionary Army entered Danxian, the Huzhou Army, which had been moving south, immediately withdrew.

What a joke! Even if we take Yangcheng, the Huo family's army is to the west and the aristocratic families' army is to the east. Just defending the city will take a lot of effort.

Furthermore, if a family is robbed, a barren Yangcheng is of no use.

Everything proceeded as expected. The imperial family's elite troops set up camp 500 li east of Yangcheng's city gate, preparing for a campaign of diplomacy followed by force.

Hu Yu'er has disappeared, Hu Wen is under house arrest in the prefect's mansion, and Jiang Jingyan has fallen into Chunzhi's hands.

The reason given by the Jiang clan's collateral branch for war was that the Hu clan of Yangcheng had gone too far by forcibly abducting one of their clan members as a son-in-law. If the Yangcheng side could not provide a reasonable explanation, then they would resort to force to let the world know that no one in the Jiang clan's collateral branch could bully them.

Chunzhi had recently read many military books and had gained considerable experience in verbal warfare. He immediately came up with a method to win without bloodshed.

Yangcheng also issued a proclamation stating that the Crown Prince of Jiang Dynasty recognized the daughter of Prefect Hu as his sworn sister, and that Jiang Jingyan would become the princess's husband.

No matter how powerful the collateral branch of the Jiang family may be, it is still just a collateral branch. How can it compare to the noble direct line? In other words, taking a son of the Jiang family as a son-in-law is a way of elevating you.

Do you have objections because you think the collateral branches of the Jiang family are superior to the direct line?

The imperial court's powerful clans were rendered speechless for a time.

Everyone knows that the person sitting on the throne now is just a member of a collateral branch of the Jiang clan.

The bloodline of the Jiang Dynasty, spanning thousands of years, still reveres the direct line.

As for why no one doubted Hensheng's identity, it was naturally because the former members of Huo's army regarded him as their master.

The Huo family army is highly regarded. People may doubt the emperor's legitimacy in ascending the throne, but they will not doubt the Huo family army's loyalty to the emperor and their love for the country.

The Huo family army has officially certified it, so who would be foolish enough to try and challenge them? Besides, is there any evidence? Hen Sheng's face is a carbon copy of Empress Song's. Back then, when a commoner woman became empress, it caused a sensation throughout the Jiang Dynasty. Anyone in a high position, who hadn't seen the empress's ethereal beauty?

"Damn it! That woman is incredibly cunning; she's actually using her reputation to intimidate us!"

In the military camp of the aristocratic families, several generals discussed their next move.

"Otherwise, let's launch a direct assault. I've inquired and found out that His Highness the Crown Prince has led 50,000 troops north to Huzhou, while the garrison in Yangcheng numbers only 10,000. We have a strong and well-equipped force, and if we launch a direct assault, we will definitely be able to take Yangcheng in time."

“That’s not a good idea.” An older general stroked his beard thoughtfully. “Even if we capture Yangcheng, we will suffer heavy losses. Siege warfare has always been a losing battle. Besides, what good would it do to capture Yangcheng? Could we still advance westward and take Shanxian as well? By then, Huzhou would probably already be in the hands of that Crown Prince. With the north and south surrounded, the situation in the capital would be extremely precarious.”

Some hot-tempered generals have already started cursing the Huzhou army.

"Those scoundrels in Huzhou clearly agreed to help us attack Yangcheng, but they changed their minds at the last minute. If they were here, we could have easily taken Yangcheng, and then we could have gone north from Yangcheng to reinforce Huzhou. Everything would have been fine."

"It's hard to say. The situation on the battlefield can change in an instant. No one can say for sure whether we will take Yangcheng first or whether the Huo family army will take Huzhou first. The cowardly rats in Huzhou are naturally going to deal with their own backyard first. However..." the old general smiled mysteriously, "we can also set fire to Yangcheng's backyard."

Meanwhile, in Huzhou, Hensheng had already led the Huo family army into battle against the Huzhou army.

Based on the personalities of the three generals from Huzhou, Hensheng adopted a military strategy he had learned from Su Zhenzhen: attack one side, win over the other, and defend against the other.

The military system of the Jiang Dynasty was somewhat similar to a family succession system; in layman's terms, it was a system where the son would outlive the father and then take over.

General Hu Buwei was once a subordinate of General Huo. He later made military achievements and was promoted to the position of Dingbian General. He was sent by the Jiang Dynasty royal family to guard Huzhou.

These three generals from Huzhou were promoted to the position of deputy general under General Hu Buwei through their military achievements.

Although General Hu Buwei had two sons, he did not raise them with him. Instead, he sent them to the border region to train in Huo's army.

Later, it was discovered that his two sons were only good at maintaining the status quo and not capable of being great generals, so he used his connections to transfer them back to the capital and make them commanders of the Imperial Guards.

Therefore, these three generals were like sons of General Hu Buwei in the Huzhou army. When General Hu Buwei died of old age, they rightfully took over the Huzhou army.

Let's call these three people Hu Yi, Hu Er, and Hu San for now.

Hu Yi was arrogant and conceited, and loved to act on his own. Relying on his seniority, he always acted like the boss in the Huzhou army.

Hu Er is a treacherous person who likes to stab people in the back with his dirty tricks. On the surface, he is a smiling tiger who is polite to everyone.

Hu San has a fiery temper and adheres strictly to military rules. He listens to whoever has the bigger fist. He greatly respects General Hu Buwei, but he also has his own ambitions.

"Hu Yi is arrogant, and as we say in our area, he deserves to be beaten. Only by beating him into submission and making him afraid will he not dare to cause trouble."

"You can't win over someone like Hu Er. He's a treacherous villain who's always looking for an opportunity to stab you in the back. You have to be on guard against him from behind at all times."

"Hu San is the easiest to deal with. Just show the strength of our Huo family army. A sensible person won't confront us head-on."

Su Zhenzhen spoke eloquently, which made Hensheng's eyes light up frequently.

"Zhenzhen, you can be the commander of our army."

Su Zhenzhen said modestly, "I just learned from the experience of those who came before me. Sister Chunzhi can also come up with these methods; she is the truly amazing one."

Hensheng didn't reply. "Zhenzhen, having you by my side is truly my greatest fortune."

Su Zhenzhen felt embarrassed by the words; indeed, no woman dislikes sweet talk.

“Zhenzhen, I plan to personally visit Hu San,” Hensheng suddenly said seriously, “to show him my sincerity in wanting to form an alliance.”

"So you'll have to stay in the military all by yourself for a while."

Su Zhenzhen appeared very magnanimous, saying, "Don't worry, I can take care of myself."

He stretched out his arm and pulled the beauty beside him into his arms, a silent tenderness flowing from their intertwined hair.

Su Zhenzhen's heart, which had been beating smoothly, suddenly began to beat irregularly.

"I will take good care of myself, don't worry."

Despite his reluctance to part with Hensheng, he still managed to sneak in alone and secretly form an alliance with Hu San.

Life after Hensheng left was no different; the battle with Hu Yi continued. Qingshan and the One-Eyed Old Man were the left and right vanguards, respectively. Fortunately, Huzhou was surrounded by mountains and forests, allowing the One-Eyed Old Man to leap over trees and suddenly attack.