However, while the soldiers were getting hot water to soak their feet and rice, the ministers accompanying the emperor were busy again. A large number of memorials and intelligence were sent to the emperor, and Emperor Zhao did not have time to say much. After taking a cup of hot tea, he began to deal with the matter.
"Give Wang De a golden medal and tell him not to underestimate the enemy and rush forward. He must wait until the friendly forces take over the siege position in Jiexiu before going north to besiege Qixian." Zhao Jiu was speechless and even a little furious when he opened the first memorial. "Where did you get the story of going to Caizhou on a snowy night? Who told him that? Did he really think Yelu Ma Wu and Wanyan Zhehe were trash and that they couldn't be eaten? Didn't he just wait in Jiexiu for a while to see Han Shizhong and Li Qiong get ahead of him again? Follow the previous military orders!"
The chief scholar Fan Zongyin at the side did not dare to delay, and immediately took up his pen and ink and began to draft the decree.
Zhao Jiu had already opened the second memorial, but he was impatient again: "Send another golden medal and tell Han Shizhong that Qi County does not belong to the Imperial Camp Left Army. His mission is to attack Pingyao first, then Taigu, and then join Wang De in advancing! Can't be too slow, can't be too fast, and can't be chaotic!"
Mei Li, a scholar from Zhi, also hurriedly took out his pen and ink to draft an order.
But before Fan Mei and the other two had written a few words, Emperor Zhao threw the third document on the table and pointed at Wang Yan: "Wang Qing, you go there in person on a fast horse, forty miles ahead, at the mouth of the Shengshui River where it flows into the Fenshui River, and find Li Yanxian, and explain it to him for me... The west bank of the Fenshui River, the line of Xiaoyi, Baibi, Guozha, Wenshui, Jiaocheng, and Qingyuan, is Wanyan Salihe's defense zone. I'm not giving it to him to attack, but to keep an eye on it, to ensure that Salihe's troops cannot cross the Fenshui River to harass us, and soon Li Shifu will arrive from the rear with cavalry to replace him to monitor Hexi, and Wu Jie will also cross the Yellow River from Shizhou and Lanzhou to take over the battle in Hexi... Let him keep his mind steady, don't waste troops, and don't be greedy for merit. The main task now is to quickly and steadily unite the army to the city of Taiyuan! Don't rush back to report after you're done, and go inspect Pingyao, Qixian, and Taigu by the way, and then wait for me in Taigu!"
Wang Yan, the commander-in-chief of the imperial camp who had been stationed in Linfen city with Lu Yihao before, did not dare to neglect him. He responded and, regardless of the darkness, rode out of the camp with several personal guards.
After Zhao Jiu gave the three instructions, he felt helpless. Even though Li Qiong did not propose any additional plans in the letter, he still asked people to draft an edict, emphasizing the importance of blocking Taihang Mountain and the passage between Shangdang and Hebei.
In this way, Yu Yunwen had no choice but to put down his pen and join the queue of drafting the edict.
Soon, the three of them finished drafting the edict and presented it to the emperor for his review. After Emperor Zhao nodded, the escort Shao Chengzhang took out the seal and added the big seal. Then Liu Yan took out the gold medal representing the highest military order and called in the members of the Red Heart Team, who hurried away in teams of ten.
However, after the decree was issued, although Emperor Zhao was so impatient that he was too lazy to even drink tea, he did not show it on his face. He just sat in the camp as still as a mountain, as if he was waiting for someone.
The answer to the mystery was soon revealed. After a while, when it was completely dark, dozens of riders holding torches walked along the passage on the west side of the Fen River and went straight to the camp where the dragon flag was located. It was none other than Qu Duan, the commander-in-chief of the imperial cavalry who had not been summoned to the north this time.
When he entered the camp, Yang Yizhong had already led him in. He passed many guards and went straight to the camp under the dragon flag. Then he bowed his head in the brightly lit camp and greeted the emperor: "I, the commander-in-chief of the cavalry of the imperial camp, Qu Duan, greets the emperor..."
"I've been waiting for you for a long time." Zhao Jiu responded coldly, not even letting the other person get up. "What do you have to say that you have to tell me in person?"
Qu Duan felt something was not good and immediately looked up and wanted to speak.
But before he could say anything else, Emperor Zhao, who was sitting there, asked again in a cold voice, "Do you think that since I allowed you to come to see me in person and explain to me in person, I have agreed to your wishes?"
Qu Duan felt a chill in his heart and became more and more panicked. All the rhetoric he had prepared before flew to Western Liao, and he could only nod.
In fact, it wasn't just Qu Duan. The atmosphere in the camp also dropped to the same temperature as outside... Let's say, it's not that no one thought that someone would suffer under Emperor Zhao's swift and decisive action this time, but when the time came, they couldn't help but feel panic.
This is the emperor who has been on the throne for nearly ten years and holds military power.
"Tell me, what do you want to say?" Zhao Jiu finally became impatient.
"Your Majesty..." Qu Duan was extremely helpless, but he could only speak carefully and tell the truth. "Your Majesty originally thought that the battle of Taiyuan was of great importance, and the Imperial Camp Cavalry might be able to participate in the battle."
"Cavalry attacking the city?" Zhao Jiu responded coldly. "Didn't I bring the Poxi Army with me? But the Poxi Army can't attack the city, right? They can only capture the stronghold."
"I'm not talking about attacking the city. In the Battle of Taiyuan, we also have to guard against the Jin army's garrisoned troops in various cities leaving the city to harass our logistics. If the imperial cavalry arrives, I will sweep the surrounding cities for you. Then you can rest assured and attack the city calmly." Qu Duan's voice became smaller and smaller.
"But didn't I ask Li Shifu to lead 10,000 Tangut light cavalry from the Imperial Camp Cavalry to do this?" As soon as the other party finished speaking, Zhao Jiu continued to ask, and he didn't stop for a moment. "Aren't Li Shifu and his troops part of the Imperial Camp Cavalry? Aren't light cavalry better at doing this?"
Qu Duan dared not say anything more.
"Isn't it because I keep you in the south to prevent the Jin army from attacking me?" Zhao Jiu kept asking. "Qu Qing, why did you have to lead your direct subordinates to the north..."
Qu Duan remained silent.
"Speak!" Zhao Jiu finally became completely impatient.
Qu Duan could no longer hold on, and finally looked up and told the truth: "Your Majesty... I am not trying to steal the credit. I just think that the battle of Taiyuan is of great importance. Once things go wrong, it will turn into a decisive battle. On your side, Prince Han is arrogant, Li Yanxian can defend but not attack, and Ma Kuo can only build walls and fortifications..."
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