Kingdom of Heaven and Han

Chapter 195 Difficulties
The snow was getting heavier, dancing under the lights, and the ground gradually became white.There was no wind, and the sky and the earth were filled with black crows.

After a long time, Wang Xiaolie said to Shao Yun: "Seeing how hard you have endured on the road, go and clean up first. There is wine and meat here, change your clothes and come to use some. It's already here, don't treat yourself harshly."

Shao Yundao: "The last general is one person, is it enough? It's just that Li Jianan is in Shanzhou, and the food and grass are exhausted early. I don't know what it is like now—"

As he spoke, tears flowed down without realizing it.

Wang Xiaolie said: "This matter is very important, and I can't answer you immediately. This matter needs to be discussed by the generals in the army. How about this, you go and pack up and eat. We will gather all the generals here to discuss together. Even if we don't Go to sleep, and I will give you a result tomorrow morning!"

Seeing Wang Xiaolie's sincere attitude, Shao Yun felt exhausted.Nodding his head, he followed the soldiers.

Watching Shao Yun's leaving back, Wang Xiaolie sat down slowly.Looking at the crowd, he said: "Accordingly, Shanzhou belongs to Shanxi Road, and there are hundreds of thousands of troops on Shaanxi Road, so we don't need to rescue them. But if Shaanxi is not rescued, is it possible to just sit and watch Li Jianguan defend an isolated city? Alas, this matter is really difficult." decision."

Niu Gao said: "Observe, since there is a handwritten letter from the Privy Councilor, we should act according to the orders."

Wang Xiaolie smiled wryly: "Lousu attacked Shanzhou and commanded an army of tens of thousands. How can we underestimate it? Thousands of people are not enough to save Shanzhou. But if you wait for the army to rescue it, it will be [-] miles away. If When we arrived, the city of Shanzhou was destroyed, so we confronted Lousu. This is a distance of eight hundred miles, and the supply of food and grass for tens of thousands of troops is not a trivial matter! At that time, we will not be able to advance, nor can we retreat, what should we do?"

Niu Gao said: "Then don't rescue him! Write a letter to Shumi Zhang, he is not unreasonable."

Wang Xiaolie shook his head: "Secretary Zhang himself was blocked on the rescue road. If we don't go to rescue, we don't even need to return the book. If you think that Privy Zhang sent this book, it's just doing your best and obeying the destiny. There is no need to consider this matter. Privy Councilors and the imperial court, we only look at ourselves. If possible, of course I want to save. But there are too many difficulties, and we must think clearly about everything."

Chen Yuyi on the side said: "If you save Shanzhou this time, the reputation of the observer will not be the same as before. Li Guan defended Shanzhou and fought hundreds of battles with the Jin army in two years. I don't know how many battles he has achieved. He defeated Lou Su last year. I heard Lou Su shed tears when talking about it with others. Even the imperial court heard his name a lot. Someone once said that this time Wanyan Zongbi invaded the south, if the imperial court had generals such as Ruo Li Jianguan and Zhai Taiwei, why did this happen!"

Wang Xiaolie nodded.At this time, Wang Xiaolie's strength has far surpassed that of Li Yanxian and Zhai Xing, but his reputation is far inferior.Both of them were on the front line, and they fought against the Jinren almost every day. I don't know how many military exploits they have.Wang Xiaolie just wiped out Yang Jin and took advantage of the gap to occupy the territory of several states.Without the military exploits against Jin, there will be no recognition of status.

Seeing that everyone was silent, Zhang Jun, who had been silent all this time, said: "In my opinion, it is useless to talk about this matter. We should carefully study the geography along the way, calculate the number of marching days, and see if we can arrive before the city is broken. If we can't , don’t mention everything. If we can arrive, we can discuss whether to send troops.”

After hearing this, Wang Xiaolie nodded: "That's right, this is the right path. It's the 26th of the twelfth lunar month, and we can only set off after the year. Even if we march on the road for fifteen days, the city of Shanzhou must not be broken before the middle of the first lunar month! Come over here, let's listen to him explain in detail."

After finishing speaking, he said to Yang Shen: "If we send [-] troops, can we guarantee the food and grass for the front line?"

Yang Shen thought for a while, then shook his head: "This trip is all mountain roads, we can't use boats, we can't use carts, and we don't have pack animals, so we can only rely on people to carry them on our shoulders. It's not easy to guarantee food and grass for a [-]-strong army! "

Wang Xiaolie said: "How about transporting grain along the way for the people of Dengzhou?"

Yang Shen shook his head when he heard this: "Observation, last year when Xinye City was built, the people of Dengzhou had all served their hard labor. Wouldn't it be a loss of popular support to force them to transport food? It is really not easy for us to have the current situation. able to do that!"

Wang Xiaolie closed his eyes and did not speak for a while.This is a policy set by oneself and cannot be violated.What you say doesn't count, so why should the people believe you?The solution is simple, just give money.Do it for a day, give money for a day.For the common people, as long as they can make money, things are fine.But the problem is, Wang Xiaolie has been short of money.

Xie Linong said: "We are going to save Shanzhou, so naturally they should supply food and grass!"

Wang Xiaolie said: "At this time, where is there any food and grass in Shanzhou? The Jin army has been besieged for nearly a month, and it should have been eaten long ago!"

Having said that, everyone lowered their heads, looking extremely embarrassed.The problem of food and grass cannot be solved, and the distance is far away. How can we save Shanzhou?If it is really like what Wang Xiaolie said, when the army arrives there, the city of Shanzhou will be destroyed, and the supply of food and grass will be difficult. Isn't it a dead end?

That's all for Shao Yun to wash and wash, he came back and saluted Wang Xiaolie.

Wang Xiaolie said: "There are wine and meat here, you can use some first. There are many things, I still need to ask you clearly before making a decision."

Shao Yun was really hungry, so he stopped being polite.Thank you Wang Xiaolie, drank a large bowl of wine, picked up the meat and gnawed wildly.

After a cup of tea, Shao Yun patted his stomach and said to Wang Xiao: "Thank you for your observation!"

Wang Xiaolie said: "We are here to discuss what difficulties will be faced if we save Shanzhou. Now we are most worried about two things. One is that we will arrive in about 20 days. Can Shanzhou be held? The other is that the road is rough and the distance It's far away, and food and grass are difficult to transport."

Shao Yundao: "This matter is not difficult. The Jin army only encircled Shanzhou and ignored Guozhou in the south. When the observation army arrived in Guozhou, if Shanzhou could not be protected, they could temporarily station in Guozhou. If the Jin army came to attack, they would Fight against them at the city of Guozhou. If the Jin army retreats, then they will enter Shanzhou."

Wang Xiaolie said: "If the Jin army doesn't leave, why not stay in Shanzhou?"

Shao Yundao: "The Jin army has tens of thousands of people, plus their auxiliary soldiers and civilian husbands, there are probably nearly 10 people. How can the grain and grass in Shanzhou support so many people? After breaking the city, the army will definitely retreat."

Wang Xiaolie nodded.This also makes sense.It is the habit of the Jin army that every time a soldier goes out to battle, he must bring several civilians with him.Although these folk husbands can help transport food and weapons, they still have to eat.Shanzhou is located between mountains and rivers, it is not a very rich place, and it has been fighting for several years, so I am afraid that it has little savings. If 10 people gather there, it is fine for a short time, but definitely not for a long time.

Niu Gao said: "What about our food and grass? Tens of thousands of troops, hundreds of miles away, can't do without food and grass."

Shao Yundao: "There are still some savings in Lushi County and Guozhou City. If there is an emergency, we can collect food from these two places for about a month. If it takes a long time, we can only transport food from the back. But in my opinion, Jin I'm afraid the army won't be able to hold on for so long."

Wang Xiaolie closed his eyes slightly, thinking in his heart.From a psychological point of view, Wang Xiaolie is extremely eager to send troops.After several years of war, there were not many generals in the Song Dynasty who could hold on to the city.Bringing out a Li Yanxian to defend Shanzhou can greatly improve the morale of the army and the people.But it is too difficult to send troops by yourself.If you can't calculate it, you may put your army in danger.

The battle between the two armies is not just a fight on the battlefield.Army movement, logistical supplies, and morale are all important factors that affect victory.All these must be thought out before the battle in order to be able to maximize the victory.The army should not take risks unless necessary.

During the War of Liberation, the great man once instructed that we should despise the enemy strategically and pay attention to the enemy tactically.It is necessary to form local advantages as much as possible, and attack with a force several times that of the enemy in each battle.If the conditions are not suitable, you have to choose another time.

This is the correct concept that a coach should have.And unlike some people in later generations, they like the battle where the less wins the more, and the weak wins the strong.Forcibly attacking without the conditions, even if there is a victory, it can temporarily improve the morale of the army, but the final result is not optimistic.

From Shao Yun's analysis of the situation, Wang Xiaolie estimated that the real Jurchen army led by Lou Su on the front line in Shanzhou had a maximum of 1 people, or even only 6000 or 2 people.Most of the Jin army should be the surrendered army, as well as the Khitan, Bohai and other tribes.Bring [-] people by yourself, although there is no guarantee of victory, but there are no major mistakes, and you will not get stuck there.

Wang Xiaolie was worried, first, how long could Li Yanxian hold on?Another one, the distance is long, how to guarantee food and grass?

The situation in the Song Dynasty was very difficult at this time, and a victory was needed.Wang Xiaolie has been dormant in Xiangyang and Dengzhou for too long, and needs a victory.Wang Xiaolie desperately needs a big victory to start his own banner.

If Shanzhou is successfully rescued, it can greatly boost the morale of the soldiers and civilians of the Song Dynasty at this time, and strengthen their determination to resist Jin.Wang Xiaolie will also gain great prestige. Only with prestige can he have territory and manpower.

Looking at the fluttering snowflakes, Wang Xiaolie frowned, considering the pros and cons of this matter.It is indeed too risky to travel eight hundred miles.But if this year's battle is missed, subsequent development will also be affected.

Seeing that everyone was silent, Wang Xiaolie said to Shao Yun: "There is no other way to go to Shanzhou from here. We can only take Wuguan Road first, and then turn to Lushi and Guozhou roads. What is the road condition of this road and how many roads are there?" Tell us about how many soldiers, horses, food and grass there are in Shanzhai, Lu’s and Guozhou City. This matter must not be careless! Our tens of thousands of troops cannot be killed because of your concealment!”

Shao Yun crossed his hands and said yes.

Wang Xiaolie ordered a general in the army who was good at drawing maps to come, and according to what Shao Yun said, he drew a map on a large piece of paper.From Xinye to Neixiang are all under the rule of Dengzhou, of course there is no problem.After crossing Neixiang County, along the Wuguan Road to Yangchengyi, the journey is easy.From Yangcheng Station to the north, to Lushi County are all mountain roads with rugged roads.From Lushi to Guozhou, there are still all mountain roads.

Looking at the map, Wang Xiaolie felt his scalp go numb.It is really not easy for the army to go this way, and the time is urgent.

(End of this chapter)