Standing under the scorching sun, Du Zhongxiao was a little distracted. Before you know it, in June, the situation on the border is tense. According to intelligence, the Khitan has ordered to gather troops and horses to Youzhou this autumn. Both the Khitan and Song dynasties began to prepare for war.

Since entering the Privy Council, Du Zhongxiao's mind has been all about fighting the Khitan. The forbidden army was internally trained, divided into several roads, and guarded Hebei. Various methods were used to listen to Khitan intelligence. Now that it was coming to an end, I suddenly felt tired.

In May, the forbidden army in Beijing was reorganized and trained into an army, organized as the Wansheng Army, with Jingtai as the commander of the capital, out of Hebei, stationed in Baozhou.

At this point, the defensive situation of the Song Dynasty on Hebei Road became clear. Jingtai led the Wansheng army to Baozhou to defend the eastern foothills of Taihang Mountain. Zhang Qi led the Ningshuo army to garrison Xiongzhou to defend the east. Wan Shengjun was supported by Liu Jianji of Dingzhou, and Ning Shuo's army was supported by Liu Jibu of Hejian Prefecture. In addition to guarding Taihang Mountain, Dou Shunqing's department in Zhending Mansion is also the reserve of the entire Hebei Road.

To defend the Hebei Plain, an army of 250,000 is enough. Not to mention that the original forbidden army on Hebei Road has trained more than 100,000 people, but it is only because of the lack of officers that it has not been organized into a new army. These armies can be used as a supplement to the front-line army.

In the current situation, Du Zhongxiao didn't know how the Khitan would attack from Youzhou and go south. In the entire east of Taihang Mountain, there is no flaw, and the Khitan army lacks a breakthrough. No matter where the attack is, it will encounter resistance from the Song army and form a stalemate. There is a railway connection, and it is difficult for the Khitan to have a chance.

Under certain technical conditions, the number of troops in a certain range is not as much as possible, there is an upper limit. If the upper limit is exceeded, more troops will be useless and will cause chaos. Not to mention the concentration of troops, complex logistics can drag down the army. The arrangement of the Song Dynasty has already covered the border, and it is useless to pile more troops on the front line. If you send troops again, you can only arrange them in the rear.

In such a situation, the Khitan wants to launch a full-scale attack? Du Zhongxiao thought about it for a long time, and couldn't figure out where the Khitan's confidence came from. Even if they poured their troops in, they could not break through the Song Dynasty defense line, and could only hold each other on the front line. Once it enters the stage of stalemate, it is a competition for national strength. Can the current Khitan compete with the Song Dynasty for national strength? Du Zhongxiao could only shake his head.

After a short time, the little yellow door came out and entered the inner hall with the officials of the Privy Council, the government hall and the three ya. When they arrived at the Chongzheng Palace, they saluted like a ceremony, and everyone entered the hall. Saluted together, Zhao Zhen gave a seat, and served tea and soup.

After using the tea soup, Zhao Zhen said: "Since the news I got from the Khitan, I have ordered to gather troops and horses this autumn and meet in Youzhou." What are they doing in Youzhou? It is almost certain that troops will be used on the Hebei Road. I have called you here today to discuss this matter. ”

Du Zhongxiao surrendered: "Last month, Jingtai led the newly formed Wansheng Army to Hebei Road. Now there are 250,000 troops in Hebei Road after training. plus the original forbidden army, as well as soldiers from all over the country, no less than 500,000 people. Even if the Khitan went south with the army of the country, it would be difficult to do anything. ”

Wen Yanbo said: "According to the Privy Council's estimates, how many soldiers and horses can the Khitan go south? ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "The Khitan army, the palace tent army directly under the jurisdiction of the lord of the country is about 100,000, the tribes are about 780,000, and the rest of the Xi people, Bohai and other armies are about 780,000, all of which add up to about 250,000. There are also tens of thousands of Han'er troops in the Yanyun area, totaling nearly 300,000 people. ”

Wen Yanbo said: "In this way, the Khitans have 300,000 people attacking Hebei, what are the chances of winning?" ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Xianggong, defending is different from attacking. When defending, it is necessary to be comprehensive, and when attacking, it is necessary to attack one point, so that the attacking and defending sides cannot only look at the strength. The Khitan marched south with 300,000 men, and its main force was about 200,000. If it can break through a little, then the army can go south with all its might, where are there so many troops in the cities of this dynasty? When the forces were concentrated, the main Khitan force did not know where to attack. In the past, the Khitan people were terrible, and that was the case. The field war can't help them, thousands of miles of plains, you can come and go. ”

Zhao Zhen said: "Although the Khitan army is not many, it cannot be underestimated. Its main force is cavalry, and once it breaks through a certain border town, it can quickly move south, and it can be crisscrossed for thousands of miles. Soon after crossing the border, the troops approached the Yellow River, which is not a lie. ”

The crowd said yes.

Zhao Zhen said: "Taiwei Du, now that the Privy Council is arranged on Hebei Road, can you prevent the Khitans from going south?" ”

Du Zhongxiao praised the wat: "Back to Your Majesty, as long as all the departments are loyal to their duties, they are not afraid of the Khitans." If the Khitans wanted to go south, the suitable route was nothing more than between Baozhou and Xiongzhou. The west of Baozhou is a big mountain, and the east of Xiongzhou is full of ponds and marshes, which is not suitable for the action of a large army. Baozhou has Jingtai Department, and Xiongzhou has Zhang Qi's Department, which can not be broken in a short time. These two states are connected to the rear by rail, and other armies can be quickly supported, and it is difficult for the Khitans to form a situation of concentrating on attacking one point. ”

Zhao Zhen nodded: "That's very good." Taiwei, since the existing troops on Hebei Road can defend against the Khitan, what if you go north to recover Youzhou? ”

Du Zhongxiao hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, attacking and defending are very different. With the existing troops, it is naturally not difficult to hold the Hebei Road, but if you attack, it is not difficult to recover Youzhou, but what is difficult is to really find and defeat the Khitan. After Yanshan, the Khitan tribes were everywhere on the vast grassland, and the people they stayed behind at that time were also soldiers, so it was difficult to fight. Moreover, when the defense is sufficient, once it is attacked, it will be difficult to mobilize. ”

Zhao Zhen said: "But when the Khitan people come south, they don't have these difficulties. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "There is Youzhou, and the Khitans can use the grain and grass there to requisition the local people, and there will be no problem in a few months." Once you enter the dynasty, you can collect grain on the spot without having to transport it from the rear. The Khitan is different, the land is vast and sparsely populated, and once the army enters, grain and grass can only be transported from the rear. ”

Wen Yanbo said: "If this is the case, if you take Youzhou first, won't it be difficult for the Khitans to offend the Central Plains?" ”

Du Zhongxiao shook his head: "Xianggong, it was difficult for the Khitan to invade the Central Plains at that time, but it was easy to commit Youzhou." As long as there is a prairie in the rear, Youzhou and Hedong should not think of a stable time. It's not necessarily easier to defend than it is now. It is better to wait for the imperial court to have sufficient troops and completely defeat the Khitan with a thunderous momentum. Hit to the north of Yanshan, plough the court and sweep the holes, breaking the root of the Khitan. ”

There are 300,000 troops on Hebei Road, which can actually go north to recover Youzhou. However, the recovery of Youzhou only destroyed the Khitan's southward advance base, and the Khitan's fundamental strength was still there. They could organize a large army and constantly go south to harass the Song Dynasty, and the situation was not much better than it is now. Du Zhongxiao's idea was to wait for the Song Dynasty to have sufficient military strength, recover Youzhou, continue to advance north, and occupy the fundamental land of the Khitan.

Zhao Zhen nodded and said, "From the point of view of the Privy Council, how should the Khitan go south this time?" ”

Du Zhongxiao thought for a while before saying: "What Yichen saw was nothing more than three situations: upper, middle and lower. The worst thing is that the front-line soldiers are not effective in combat, and they are broken through a little by the Khitans at the beginning, and the army is in depth. It is only possible to quickly concentrate forces and fight with them in the territory. The middle strategy is to block the Khitan army under the city of Baozhou or Xiongzhou, and after months of fierce fighting, the Khitan people naturally retreat. If the best strategy is to mobilize the army and annihilate the Khitan forces that came south this time in Youzhou. This is the main Khitan force, once it is completely annihilated, the imperial army will go north, and there will be no resistance. ”

Zhao Zhen listened and said: "How many tens of thousands of people are sure of annihilating the main force of the Khitan in Youzhou?" Can it be done with the existing troops? ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "There are only 250,000 available soldiers on Hebei Road. It is actually very difficult to completely annihilate the Khitan and 300,000 people with 250,000 people. If there are another 120,000 people, who can be used as a mobile force in defensive operations, everything will be difficult. ”

Zhao Zhen nodded, was silent for a while, and said, "According to what the Taiwei can see, before the autumn, can you train another 120,000 people?" ”

Du Zhongxiao thought for a while and said, "Back to Your Majesty, if you are attentive, it is possible to do it." But everything was rushed and not easy. In less than a year, 150,000 people have been trained, and the number of officers trained in the past few years has basically been exhausted. ”