Hejian Mansion Shuaisi, Du Zhongxiao stood in the courtyard, looking at the busy crowd, his face calm. After these five or six days of arrangement, the current Shuai Si has a preliminary appearance. The subordinate institutions are basically completed, and the officials are in place to perform their duties.

Day by day, it was getting colder, the surrounding rivers were frozen, the snow on the ground had not melted, and even the ice under the eaves was hanging for more than a foot, and at noon it was ticking and dripping. The army issued cotton clothes, and the people who came and went were wrapped like browns, and they looked a little funny.

A soldier came over and crossed his hand to Du Zhongxiao: "Captain, the generals have arrived at the official hall and are sitting there waiting." ”

Du Zhongxiao nodded, ordered the soldiers to go, and walked to the official hall on the side.

After entering the official hall, the generals got up, saluted Du Zhongxiao, and sat down.

Du Zhongxiao sat down on the main seat and said to everyone: "The Khitan has surrounded the Xin'an army, and the main force has passed the Diaoyutai village and is advancing towards the Qianning army. However, they did not come west to attack the state, but only to the south. It should be the same as we estimated, go to Cangzhou. ”

Fu Bi said: "Cangzhou is a large coastal state, with a vast area and salt farms, which is comparable to unusual places. At present, there are 5,000 troops in the state, more than 200 artillery pieces, and sufficient food, grass and ammunition. According to their own estimates, there should be no problem in holding on for half a year. ”

Liu Ji shook his head: "If you can keep it for half a year, the Khitan people's grain and grass will run out early, and they will starve them back if they are hungry." ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "The army itself estimates, it can't be taken seriously, and the time is just a long time." According to Shuaisi's estimates, if the Khitan attacked desperately, Cangzhou's supplies should be able to hold for three months. However, if it really starts, if nothing else, the amount of ammunition used is not good. For Cangzhou, Shuai Si set a time of two months. If the Khitan still does not retreat after two months, Shuai Si will send troops to relieve the siege. ”

What to keep for half a year, Du Zhongxiao didn't believe it at all. How many shells are being transported to Cangzhou these days? The Khitan really attacked desperately, and it would be great if it could hold for two or three months. More than 300,000 troops attacked a city, and the Khitan had artillery, so it is not good to say what happened at that time. Even, Du Zhongxiao made preparations for the Khitan to attack Cangzhou in his heart, and thought of a response plan.

The 13th Lang Shuai 50,000 cavalry has arrived in Qizhou and is advancing towards Dezhou and Dizhou, blocking the Khitan road to the south. Due to the fact that the nearby state armies were strong and clear, the Khitan could not afford to send a large army to go deeper, so they could only storm Cangzhou. Only after breaking Cangzhou can you face Thirteen Lang.

Zhao Zi said: "Shuai Si's plan is to lure the enemy near Cangzhou first. When the enemy's morale is exhausted, several armies will come out together to annihilate the enemy army. Now Xiongzhou is garrisoned by Zhang Qi, and Hejian Mansion has the army of Liu Taiwei. In addition, the newly transferred Dou Shunqing and Liu Jianji armies, and most of Jia Kui's army, a total of about 230,000 people. The Shuai Division was located in Hejian Mansion, where Liu Jianji and Liu Ji's troops were stationed. The materials coming to Hebei Road are centered in Xiongzhou and distributed to all parties. Jia Kui's army was stationed in Mozhou, and Dou Shunqing was stationed in Bazhou. Li Fugui was a transit envoy with the army and was stationed in Xiongzhou. ”

Li Fu got up and sang a promise with his hands crossed. Hajian Province is the terminus of a railway line and is not suitable as a transshipment center for supplies. The battle line was moved to the east, and the location suitable for the transfer of materials was Xiongzhou. Li Fugui has been in charge of the army's logistics for many years, and now at the critical moment, it is most appropriate for him to take charge.

Zhao Zi said: "The original forbidden army of 80,000 people on Hebei Road was organized into two armies and stationed near the Qianning Army to prevent the Khitan from suddenly advancing eastward. The first army was led by Ma Huaide and stationed in the vicinity of Qianning and Mumen. The First Army, led by Li Weixian, was stationed near Jingcheng Town. The two armies echoed each other and defended Hejian Province. ”

Fu Bi said: "These armies are all newly formed, and the combat strength is not good. Liu of Hejian Mansion must be ready at any time. As soon as they had an accident, they immediately rescued. The purpose of the Khitan offensive should still be Cangzhou, and the Qianning Army is only the flank. ”

Liu Jicha sang a promise. He was originally a strategic envoy to Yanbian on Hebei Road, and Du Zhongxiao was the handsome, and he was also the deputy marshal. In fact, like in the army, he is the first person in line to succeed Du Zhongxiao in case of an accident. Although Fu Bi is a privy deputy, he is not a commander, but a general officer.

After Zhao Zi finished arranging, Du Zhongxiao said: "In this battle, Shuai Si is preparing to let the Khitan attack for two months. Approaching the end of the year, the army was dispatched to fight a decisive battle with the enemy. In the past two months, all armies must be prepared, not just sit and wait. For example, when attacking, the armies can no longer rely on railways, but on pack animals. How to use pack animals, you must first have regulations, and you can't mess up at that time. All kinds of things, these days carefully lay out various plans, and then gradually refine. When a large army fights, the pre-war plan is still very important, and it is absolutely impossible to think of a way until the wartime. ”

The generals will join in the promise.

Du Zhongxiao said again: "In the area of Zhuozhou and Yizhou, the Khitan Zhuozhou and Yizhou are gathered, and it was not easy to explore some time ago. Now the Khitan army is heading south, and there are now all signed troops transporting grain, which is not as strict as a few days ago. Li Zhang, he should send more people to find out the information that should be heard. In particular, we must find out all the way to the geography and people's conditions, the marching routes, the mountains and rivers, and so on. ”

Li Zhang's forked hands promised. His status is inconspicuous, but he is actually very important. Many of the other agencies made decisions based on Li Zhang's work. Whether Li Zhang does well or not will directly affect whether the follow-up war will go smoothly or not.

Du Zhongxiao nodded and said, "Everyone, if you have any doubts or difficulties, you can raise them now." ”

Ma Huaide arched his hand: "Tai Lieutenant, although the soldiers under the subordinate have undergone training, they are extremely incomplete. In the past, it was only organized into regiments, and then there were no more at the next level, and now the armies and divisions are all hastily organized. Suddenly, they were sent to the front, but they were afraid that the command would not be effective. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "You are defending, not attacking, even if the establishment is incomplete, it will not have a big impact." This time, when we went to defend the Qianning Army, we had to train while fighting a war, so that these fast-formed troops could truly be trained into a strong army. Officials at the army and division levels, in principle, are still old people who use the Hebei Road Forbidden Army, you can recommend yourself, report to the commander's department, and complete it as soon as possible. ”

Ma Huaide gave up. It's not easy to think about what Du Zhongxiao said, but I don't know how to refute it, so I have to sit down. Obviously, these organized forbidden troops, due to the lack of the necessary time like the Beijing Military Academy, Du Zhongxiao couldn't make up his mind. Training while fighting is actually to make up for the shortcomings of the lack of time in military schools and to let the army take shape as soon as possible.

Li Weixian said: "Not only are the officials in the army uneven, but the rest of the matters are also insufficient. For example, according to other armies, corps and divisions, they all have their own artillery and cavalry, and they have their own grain and grass officers. Now there is nothing, how to deal with it, it makes people's heads big. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Your two armies, now in wartime, Shuai Si has no way to do everything for a while. It is easy to train troops, but it is difficult to select officers. You have been in Hebei Road for many years, and the power is given to you, so you can choose your own officials and report to the commander's department to decide. ”

Li Weixian and Ma Huaide glanced at each other, and they both shook their heads secretly in their hearts. What if there is too much lacking, what about giving power? The military academy in Hejian Province has only been going on for less than a year, and there are not enough officers, so naturally there is no need to say more. Where to choose? Recommendation is not only a power, but also a responsibility, and officials will be implicated in the future.

Seeing that the two of them stopped talking, Du Zhongxiao said to Li Fugui: "There are 80,000 people who go to the Qianning Army, and we must ensure that they have sufficient supplies." It is not because they were first formed that there is a shortage of materials and make the soldiers complain. The three divisions have transferred a lot of trains to Hebei Road, and the capacity is sufficient. Hundreds of thousands of pack animals were transported to the northwest, and it was also very convenient to transport them from Hejian Province. ”

Li Fugui forked his hand and promised. These 80,000 people are indeed not taken seriously, and they are all considered to be a half-finished army with an incomplete command system. However, now the reorganization of the forbidden army in the capital lacks generals, and there is really no way. Material replenishment, it is estimated that there is no rule in their army, Li Fugui just thinks of a way.

Seeing that everyone stopped talking, Du Zhongxiao said: "These two months are not easy to endure. As far as the commanders of the armies are concerned, they must do their utmost to draw up the most perfect plan possible. It is also necessary to hurry up and train the soldiers, so as not to go on a business trip in wartime. All general officers in the army must ensure that the morale of the army does not fall, that there is no shortage of materials, and that the fighting spirit is strong. Don't be idle for a while, and the whole army will slack off. The commander will inspect the armies from time to time, and you all know it. If you do a bad job, you will be punished severely! ”

The generals said yes.

Fu Bi said: "In response to the Khitan this time, the imperial court has dispatched an army of 430,000 people. When the Khitan came south, he gathered 400,000 soldiers and horses from various departments, and signed an army of 400,000, a total of 800,000 troops. More than 1 million troops on both sides fought a decisive battle in the land of Hebei Road and several states, which was unseen for hundreds of years. You are all vigilant and must not slack off! Which one has an accident, Shuai Si will not tolerate it! ”

As soon as these words came out, the atmosphere suddenly became calm. The two directors of the Shuai Division, Du Zhongxiao are in charge of the overall situation and command, and they are relatively kind to the generals. Fu Bi is in charge of the morale of the army and also in charge of military law, so he is not so polite.

Up to now, the army used by the Song army is 300,000 people of the Sixth Army near the border of Hebei Road. There are also thirteen Lang of Qizhou, who are also under the command of Du Zhongxiao, plus the 80,000 troops guarding the Qianning Army, which has exceeded 400,000. As time passed, more and more troops of the Song Dynasty entered the war, and slowly began to be on a par with the Khitan. A decisive battle of more than a million troops for hundreds of miles is rare in history.

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