The flames of the Yandi war are still on fire. The sixteen states of Youyun are divided into seven states in front of the mountain and nine states in the back of the mountain. The seven states in front of the mountain are Yizhou. Zhuozhou. Youzhou and other places. for the south. Yasango Kyushu is located in the north. Now the seven states in front of the mountain, except for Youzhou, have all fallen into the hands of the Tang Dynasty. And Kyushu is the country of the Khitans. And the control is also greater.

Seeing that winter is coming. Li Cunmiao is still constantly attacking the supply lines of the Khitan army. Supplies are not easy to come by. The Khitans want to supply 500,000 troops to eat. That's a staggering consumption. Therefore, cut back on food and clothing. Not willing to spend lavishly. This time, most of them belonged to Li Cunqing. Li Cunmiao fights to raise war. I didn't ask Duan Mingyu for another cent of grain and grass.

It was a bit difficult for these grains to supply the 500,000 soldiers and horses of the Khitan army. But it was easy to supply Li Cunqing's 30,000 horses. The officers and men of the three armies all had a full meal. The Khitan Han soldiers who abandoned their weapons and surrendered looked pitifully. Hungry and spitting. How to solve these troop drops. It has become a big problem that Li Cunqiao is about to solve.

You can't kill if you kill. It's not just Li Cunqiao. The generals under Li Cunqiao have also reached this consensus. If you kill all the soldiers who have surrendered. That's the stupidest thing to do. Vowed to let the Khitan Han army, which was not resolute in battle, fight against the Tang army from now on and move forward bravely. No retreat. But it didn't work out if I took it. Li Cunqiao couldn't afford to raise so many soldiers.

Li Cunqiao thought for a long time. Said to the left and right generals: "The soldiers are fine but not many. At the moment we have few soldiers. But the goal should not be too big in the first place. And the Khitan Han army was unstable. Staying behind can only ruin my army's heart. And there will be limited food and grass. I can't afford to raise so many pawns. It's better to let it go. With the heart of slacking the Khitan Han generals and horses to the death."

In the course of an attack on the Khitan grain route. The soldiers captured a well-mannered Khitan Han soldier. The soldier said he wanted to see Li Cunqiao. It just so happened that Li Cunqiao was the general who personally led the team this time. I talked to the soldier. That's what I knew. This soldier turned out to be a staff member of the Khitan Han general Zhang Shifang. Zhang Shifang has already sent several groups of staff to contact Li Cunmiao. But Li Cunmiao's whereabouts are erratic. Zhang Shifang has not been found many times. This staff member is also smart. Mixed in the Khitan grain and grass team. And so on several times. He really touched it.

Li Cunqiao learned from this staff member who was pretending to be a soldier. The Khitan Han general Zhang Shifang intends to surrender. I want to discuss with Duan Mingyu. Li Cunmiao didn't dare to call the shots. So he stayed with this staff member in Qi County to meet Duan Mingyu.

Duan Mingyu was overjoyed and asked the staff a few questions. Only then did I learn the reason why Zhang Shifang was ready to surrender. It turns out that Zhang Shifang and Guo Sheng have always been good friends. Guo Sheng's death hit him hard. And since the Khitan army garrisoned the Gaoliang River. He has been sending troops to attack Qi County. But they are all based on the nine divisions of their Han army. The nine divisions of the Khitan Han army totaled nearly 200,000 people. Guo Sheng is one of them. After taking turns to attack. The Khitan Han army suffered heavy losses. Zhang Shifang is also a lost soldier. Miserable. And the Khitan army was unscathed. And the Khitans were extremely harsh on the Han army in terms of military resources. Seeing that winter is coming. Not even the basic jacket has been heard from. The military rations can also be less. The Khitan army was different. For every cow and half a month, you can get a sheep. Three buckets of rice per person per day.

Zhang Shifang, both public and private, should start to retreat for his troops. Duan Mingyu was overjoyed. I talked with the chief of staff for three hours. That's why the staff member returned with his own handwritten letter.

Zhang Shifang was frowning in the big tent. The staff member quietly entered the big tent. whispered a few words to Zhang Shifang. Zhang Shifang was shocked. There was a flash of ecstasy on his face." What the gentleman said is true."

"There are letters to rely on."

Zhang Shifang opened the letter and looked at it. His face began to be cloudy." So. We're going to have to take a risk. Please sir, look."

The staff took the letter. After reading it, I also looked hesitant. Zhang Shifang asked with a bitter face. If you want to surrender, you have to have a letter of nomination. Sir, what do you think we should do?"

The staff member stroked his beard and said. Duan Mingyu's move was really ruthless. Rejected the momentary gains and losses in front of me. Instead, he left the general's move in the decisive battle with the Khitan in other days. It can't be said that it is not considered to be a general. The general can do what he says."

"But sir. . . Duan Mingyu told me to wait and be patient for the time being. Contact people of insight in the nine divisions of the Khitan Han Army. At that time, he took the initiative to fight against the Khitan army in a decisive battle. It's a big risk." Zhang Shifang still hesitated.

"General. If you do. Then the general will still be sent to fight in Qi County. Our men are pretty thick. There were forty thousand people. But what about Guo Sheng. He's better than us. Even if the general is not eaten by Li Cunqiao like Guo Sheng. It is the casualty under the city of Qixian. It's enough to clean up our foundation." The staff member then added. And the general sees it clearly. Tang Jun has always been benevolent. After Guo Sheng's defeat, Duan Mingyu released his return, which was a friendly signal to us. Again. When the general attacked Qi County. The Khitans will not send a single soldier to support the general. And Duan Mingyu will definitely attack with all his strength when we turn against us. He's not going to let go of this only opportunity."

Zhang Shifang listened. I think it makes sense. His face was much better. Finally, he gritted his teeth and said, "Let me be patient for the time being. It's not impossible to wait for him to turn against him. You go back and tell Duan Mingyu. If you want Ben to do the same. Turnaround blow. He must be allowed to attack the Khitan army first. Otherwise, there is no need to mention the matter."

The staff member said slowly: "The general's move is safe."

This staff member has made another trip to Qi County. brought back a sentence from Duan Mingyu." After one month. Send troops to the Gaoliang River."

Seeing that Duan Mingyu was so bold. Zhang Shifang immediately contacted several friends of the Khitan Han General's Nine Divisions. After a verbal temptation. There are three things that can be done together. These three plus their own men and horses have an army of 90,000. Zhang Shifang secretly calculated. I think it can be a big deal.

A month later. It's already late November. Layers of lead-colored clouds began to rise over the swallows. This is a precursor to the coming snow. Duan Mingyu stood on top of the Qixian City Tower. Look up to the sky and sigh. Said to Wang Yanzhang beside him." Before you set out. I said it to Your Majesty. Within two months. The war will be pacified. It's been three months. The war is still so stalemate. Duan is ashamed of His Majesty."

"Lord Wang, please rest assured. Our army will definitely be able to succeed in this battle. The main force of the Khitan reinforcements suffered a major setback. Yanjing City is ready to go down." Wang Yanzhang said with confidence.

"I hope so. Are you ready over there?"

"Everything is ready."