Liu Yu is not the stallion that Galdan Tse Ling compared, but when the grass was green in the spring of the fifteenth year of Taixing, he was really as excited as a war horse.

In the fourth month of the lunar calendar, the weather gradually warmed up, and the green grass was already exposed in some places, and the snow lilies squeezed out the layer of ice and snow covering them, trying to produce small yellow and white flowers.

The hussars, who had been holding back for a winter, began to scatter and attack, attacking the tribes, capturing people, finding their way, drawing maps, and everything was busy in an orderly manner.

The herdsmen in transit became the best prey for these light cavalry, and more detailed maps of the Altai mountain passes were also sorted out from the herdsmen's mouths.

The emperor's army on the Western Road came with news that the main force of Dace Ling Dun Duobu was near Luntai, and Liu Yu didn't care at all.

It doesn't matter if he's acting or real, he just responds to all changes with the same.

Without the main force of the enemy, he crossed the Altai Mountains.

If there is the main force of the enemy, then it will be fought in the field, just to be defeated.

Beyond the Altai Mountains is the Irtysh River, which is not a desert, but the best alpine pasture areas, where supplies are not a problem.

Judging from the timing of this year's ice melt, it should be a warm year.

Chief of Staff Wu Fangrui hurriedly ran to Liu Yu's side, disturbed Liu Yu, who was watching the glacier melt, and shouted a report and said, "Lord Liu, the light cavalry has captured a few more Dzungars. It is said that the pastoral tent of Xiao Celing Dundob is not far away, and there are only thousands of private soldiers around him. Part of the enemy forces in the southern foothills of the Altai Mountains was on their way. ”

This is the fourth time that I have received such news, and the group of soldiers from Songhua River may not be strong in battle, but they are really talented in stealing chickens and dogs, catching people and touching the camp.

The Altai Mountains are also known as the Golden Mountains by the Mongolians, and herdsmen here often pick up the dog's head gold. A few days ago, a few light horsemen robbed a quasi-ministry outpost, snatched horses, cattle and sheep from the herdsmen there, and actually snatched a piece of dog's head gold weighing more than four catties.

When the news came, these light horsemen seemed to be crazy, and they were like locusts in groups, full of energy.

Thinking about the fact that Du Feng hid in a tree that day and wanted to rob his "caravan", Liu Yu showed a smile on his face and said: "If you catch someone, you will be rewarded with silver." ”

"My lord, according to the art of war, you should take the initiative to attack at this time. They are gathering forces, and we should attack one of them before they are firmly established. ”

Liu Yu shook his head and said, "What's the hurry?" What about after the fight? It's not easy to cross the Altai Mountains now, wait another month or two for the weather to be completely warm. ”

Now is not the time to send troops, the snow on the mountains has not yet melted, and some herders say that there will be heavy snow from time to time.

This is not a desert, the mountains are full of larches and birches, which make those soldiers and light horsemen recruited from the Songhua River feel like they have returned to the place where they have lived since childhood.

For Liu Yu, he did not pay attention to the Dzungar army, and all that hindered him was the power of nature. The towering mountains in the distance really make people feel a sense of hopeless helplessness.

Wu Fangrui understood what Liu Yu meant, and asked: "My lord, since it is said that Da Ce Ling Dun Dobu has gathered troops on the opposite side of the army on the West Road, whether it is true or not, we should take the opportunity to continue to build the city." ”

"Well, you can build a city. Let the sappers take two thousand auxiliaries and send another regiment to follow for protection. Go build it. Don't be in a hurry now, wait until the weather is warm and there is no problem to cross the Altai Mountains, and then talk about the rest. It just so happened that the Dzungars were asked to look at the means of building the city by professional sappers. You take someone with you. ”

Wu Fangrui saw that Liu Yu asked him to lead the troops alone, and he was slightly excited in his heart, and hurriedly nodded.

Where to build the city, a plan has long been made. A little ahead means that you will have to go a little less in the future.

The strength of a regiment, the outward troops and a part of the auxiliaries, which is also the appropriate number deduced by the General Staff.

If the Dzungar army was here, it would definitely want to eat Liu Yu's more than 10,000 troops.

A regiment of processing troops went forward, not counting the combat effectiveness of the auxiliaries, it was enough to resist the siege of seven or eight thousand people in Dzungaria, and the large army was not far apart, and once it supported the Zhun Division, it had to run away.

If it is a small part of the troops, they can't be moved, and they don't dare to fight.

If the main force of the quasi-division is here, it will not reveal its strategic intentions for the strength of a regiment.

Liu Yu is not in a hurry. Regardless of whether the main force of the quasi-department is here or not, he is waiting for the weather to be warmer.

Once the main force of the quasi-department is here, after defeating the main force of the quasi-department, quickly cross the Altai Mountains, chase the dead to the north, learn from Huo to get sick and plunder cattle and horses for supplies, and kill all the way to the heart of the quasi-department.

He wants to make sure that after defeating the main force, he can directly climb the mountain.

Instead of after defeating the main force, the snow on the mountain has not yet melted, so that I watched the remnants of the quasi-division run away.

The quasi-department can brave the heavy snow to climb the mountain at the cost of his life, and he will not take such a risk if he relies on the Qingzhou army to fight the whole field.

Wu Fangrui, who received Liu Yu's order, took the fourth regiment and the engineer unit to the predetermined location, and the professional engineer unit began to command the auxiliary troops to build the city.

The main force of the regiment was on guard outside.

There were professional sappers, and the speed of building the city was fast.

As they built the city, many pairs of eyes were fixed on the small newly built fortress that was at odds with the big city.

The light cavalry of the Qingzhou Army, which annoyed Xiao Celing Dundobu, was haunted every day, and he could only lead more than 100 people to observe the newly built city.

Looking at the rudimentary city walls and edges and corners, Xiao Celing Dundob's face was extremely ugly.

The siege of the fortress of Lake Yamesh is still fresh in his memory, and the feeling of despair cannot be forgotten to this day.

"These Han Chinese are very good at building cities. That Liu Yu is like a groundhog, and the soldiers under him are also groundhogs. What will we do if they are allowed to cross the Altai Mountains and build such a city? ”

Otok Zasan, who was originally stationed in Almaty in the Seven River Valley to defend against Kazakhstan, a Mongolian nobleman named Dalin was also worried.

This time, the Great Khan gambled heavily, and even the troops stationed in Almaty, who suppressed the Kazakhs, were also transferred.

Now it seems that the concealment was successful, and the Kazakhs did not know about this transfer.

But the more time drags on, it is difficult to say whether the Kazakhs will take advantage of the opportunity to cause trouble.

This is also a big gamble for Gardance Zero.

Once the bet is lost, not to mention the squeeze of Dashun, the Kazakhs and Turkuts in the west will immediately pounce on them like hungry wolves.

Darling observed the vague fortification in the distance and said, "This group of Han rats is very timid. They were either in the city or building it. Shall we watch them build the city like this? They attacked our posts, plundered our cattle and sheep, and killed many of our mighty men. Could it be that our Dzungar warriors died in vain like this? They are only a few thousand people, and the city has not yet been built, so why don't we fight a dozen? ”

Darling wanted to say something like a coward, but he held back. Everyone knows that Xiao Celing Dundob is the most courageous, and in front of such a brave person, he is not qualified to use cowards and other agitation methods.

Xiao Celing Dundobu looked at it for a while, shook his head and said, "You can't attack like this. Their light horsemen were always watching us, and our main force could not avoid them. If our army comes and they can't build the city, they will run back into the city. If the city is built, they will be able to keep it in it. They may not be able to fight in the field, but they should be very good at defending the city. ”

Xiao Celing Dundob does not have a special staff group, but many years of actual combat experience have given him an almost intuitive judgment.

The reconnaissance distance of these annoying light horsemen was about forty to fifty miles, and it was impossible for the light horsemen not to find out when the army was dispatched.

Most of these Han soldiers were infantry, and according to Xiao Celing Dundobu's intuition, they couldn't go fast.

The warning range of fifty miles, counting the time of fierce battles, will allow the army to leave the city for at least two or three hundred miles.

In this way, even if the light cavalry gave warning in advance, they would not be able to run back to the big city, and the army of the big city would not be able to support before the total annihilation.

This time difference can be calculated by the people of the staff committee.

And a person like him, who has fought all his life, can also know it by heart with intuition and experience.

The army cannot be exposed.

If the northern front is exposed, the Han soldiers on the western front will immediately go out and enter the Luntai to build the city. When the time comes, we will not be able to see each other, but we will perish.

"Wait, wait. Don't be impatient. Now that the water and grass are about to become fat, our warriors do not need food and can continue to wait. Their emperor will urge them to send troops to cross the Altai Mountains. ”

Given an explanation to silence his subordinates, Celingdon Dob continued to observe the fortification with his captured Russian telescope, and the speed of the fortification was beyond his expectations.

As he was watching, a sparse burst of gunfire was heard in the distance.

Darling heard the gunshots and cursed.

"It's the light horsemen of the Han people again, and they're like wolves. These people are not easy to deal with, the riding skills are not bad, and the muskets are better. They all carried two short guns. Let's go. ”

Little Ce Ling Dun Dob nodded, got on his horse, did not entangle with the light horse in the distance, and left quickly.

Tucked away in a tent in the valley, Dace Lingdun Dob is also quietly waiting for the arrival of a warmer summer, and is not in a hurry.

The news brought back by Xiao Ce Ling Dun Duobu made him even more convinced that Liu Yu on the opposite side was a good hand at building and advancing the city, and there was no way to deal with such a person defending the city.

His own strategy is a big gamble, once the gamble is made, it is necessary to annihilate this army of more than 10,000 people before the western army on the southern front can react.

Otherwise, the western army on the southern front would know that the main force of the Dzungar Department was in the north, and they could quickly advance westward and build a city in Luntai. Once you squeeze into Luntai and build the city, and you don't eat it here, then Dzungaria is in danger.

"Those Han soldiers don't go out of the city, it's hard to fight. Their light horsemen are very high, like hungry wolves, and it is difficult to know where they will appear. If we want to defeat their army, we must trick them into leaving the city at least two or three hundred miles, otherwise it will be difficult to intercept them. ”

Little Ce Ling Dun Dob said what he thought, and Big Ce Ling Dun Duo said: "Don't be impatient with this. It is useless for them to build a city here, they will always cross the Altai Mountains. Their emperor thought that our army was in the south of the mountain, and he would definitely urge them to climb the mountain and build a city. And, isn't someone caught? That Liu Yu must know that you are nearby. ”

The news of the army of the Great Ce Ling Dun Dob has not leaked, and many people know that the little Ce Ling Dun Dob is stationed here, and the tribe here is his subordinate.

However, this news did not lure those people to attack, and those who built the city just built the city every day, grazed the herds, and did not do the rest.

"In a few days, you will take some men and attack their town. Don't kill too many people, just attack and besiege them, deliberately making them think you're luring them into attacking. Let those Han people see at a glance that you are tricking them into going out of the city to pursue. ”

The strategy of Da Ce Ling Dun Dob made Xiao Ce Ling Dun Dob completely incomprehensible.

Trick them out of town, it's the established strategy.

But wouldn't they be more cautious if they deliberately let them see that they were trying to trick them out of the city? In that case, wouldn't it be even more impossible to get out of the city?

Faced with doubts, Da Ce Ling Dun Dobu smiled: "Let them see that you are tricking them out of the city, and they will go out of the city." Don't you think they don't want to go out of town and attack your ranch right now? ”

"It's just that they're not sure how many of our people are in the south of the mountain and how many are in the north of the mountain, so they're cautious."

"If you make a move that they can see that you're tricking them, they'll think that you don't have many soldiers, and you're just deliberately doing this to keep them out of town. Instead, they will go out of the city in pursuit. ”

"In the Han art of war, this is called bluffing. The more bluff you are, the more they think you don't have many soldiers. ”

Little Ce Ling Dun Dob still didn't understand.

Da Ce Ling Dun Dob's idea is right, Da Shun's strategy is to advance from north to south, cutting the head and removing the tail. The limitation of supply lines made it possible for each army to gather only one or two thousand troops.

If the main force of the quasi-division is in the south, then advance to the north; Vice versa.

They are all about building cities and reclamation at several key points, squeezing the pastures of the quasi-department. At least for now, it seems like such a strategy.

In terms of the art of war, when the enemy's assembly is not completed, we can take the initiative to attack and destroy the enemy, so that we can grasp the strategic initiative. It would be unwise to wait until the enemy is assembled before fighting.

The strategy of the big Ce Ling Dun Dob is to make the little Ce Ling Dun Dob make a "bluff" attitude. made Liu Yu convinced that Xiao Ce Ling Dun Dobu was just bluffing, so he was suspicious, but in fact, there were not many soldiers in his hands at all.

Let the Han soldiers think that the main force of the main force of the division is on the southern front.

If you want to climb the mountain, you must solve the problem of Xiaoce Ling Dun Dob in the north of the mountain.

Because in his opinion, the strategy of the Han army is very clear: if this side is the main force, then build a city and drag it; But if it is not the main force, it should first attack the pastoral tent of the small Tseling Dundob, and after removing the threat of the Northern Route Army going over the mountain, he should build a city along the Irtysh River to defend it.

Finally explained the strategy clearly, Xiao Ce Ling Dun Dobu also understood the key, and asked: "If they are cowards and don't dare to come out, doesn't that make them even more daring?" They will even think that our main force is here, what should we do if we march on the southern front? ”

Dace Lingdun Dobu sighed and said, "Is it possible that the war can be predicted at all? Now we have even requisitioned the accounts of the suppression of Kazakhstan, which is a gamble. If they had known everything, now the southern front would have marched to fortification, and we would have lost. Now the southern front can still deceive them and make them dare not attack and build a city for the time being, and this is our chance. ”

"Go ahead, give it a try, no matter what. There is no such thing as a war that can be predicted. You don't have too many soldiers and horses, just six or seven thousand people. The people in the small city dare not chase, and will wait for the people in the big city. ”

"As long as the people of the great city go out of the city, two or three hundred miles, we can try to surround them. As long as they are defeated, they will be able to bypass those cities and plunder the Khalkhas, and attack their inns. ”