Outside the gate of Wuqing City, below Zhao Zi, Dou Shunqing, Liu Jianji, Zhang Qi, Jia Kui, Jingtai, Ma Huaide, Li Weixian, Shisanlang, Liu Jian and Yao Shouxin and other army commanders, as well as most of the subordinate divisions, were all there to greet them.

Zhao Zhen arrived outside the city gate, military music rang out in unison, and the generals sang promises. Because in wartime, although the etiquette was cut a lot, it was still cumbersome and abnormal.

entered the county seat of Wuqing County, arrived at the Yamen, and Zhao Zhen arrived at the main seat of the official hall.

The small county yamen, so many people came in one day, it was almost impossible to fit, and it was extremely crowded. Zhao Zhen said a few words casually, and then ordered all the armies to command the envoys to stay, and the rest of the people went back for the time being. Tonight, the county town will hold a banquet to entertain these generals.

When he arrived at the back office, Zhao Zi had already chosen a big room as the headquarters and brought people to prepare. The war was going to start tomorrow, and Zhao Zhen took the generals to the house to listen to Zhao Zi's report on the battle plan.

Pointing to the sand table on the table, Zhao Zi said: "Now the Khitan army here has a total of 260,000 people. In addition, there are about 120,000 signatories. Recently, there has been a shortage of food, and many of the signatories have surrendered, and most of them have been released back to their hometowns. Also, in the name of strict military discipline, the Khitan killed about 20,000 soldiers. Therefore, their signing can not be counted as combat power. ”

Zhao Zhen said: "We now have more than 500,000 troops, and we have enough manpower, so it is better to estimate that we have enough." ”

Zhao Zi said: "What Your Majesty said is true. When we made the plan, the signing of the army was still counted, and the troops were abundant. The Khitan military camp is arranged in the center of the palace army with Yelu Hongji, on the left are the two divisions of Gu Yin and Dielide, and on the right is the Xi army led by Xi Maliu. Due to the shortage of military rations, the hearts of the Xi army were fluctuating, and Xi Maliu once sent people over, with the intention of surrendering. ”

Zhao Zhen nodded: "The Xi people are not Khitans after all, and it is common to think about themselves at this time." How did you reply? ”

Zhao Zi said: "Xi Maliu is not resolute, just tentative, and did not talk about anything. When the time comes, it is about to attack, and there is no need to consider whether the Xi army will surrender or not. Several armies marched together and wiped out all the Khitan troops. These days, the Khitans have been killing horses to replenish military rations, and there has long been no horse material in the army, and it is estimated that their cavalry has run out of horses. ”

Zhao Zhen frowned when he heard this: "The cavalry has no horses, so what combat power does it have?" The horse bow used by the Khitan people is far inferior to the foot bow, and if they do not ride horses, their combat strength is inferior. In this way, tomorrow should be easy. ”

Zhao Zi said: "We use guns, and what weapons the Khitans use has no effect. However, without horses, the combat power is indeed much worse than before. According to our estimates, as long as we have one day tomorrow and three days earlier, we can wipe out all the Khitan troops here. ”

After speaking, Zhao Zi pointed to the sand table and said: "In the past two days, I have discussed with the generals, and it is roughly arranged like this. In the north, the two armies of Dou Shunqing and Liu Jianji, and the first army of Liu Jian in the south, with a total of 150,000 people, attacked Yelu Hongji's army. With about 80,000 soldiers, Yelu Hongji is the most elite army in the Khitan, and it is also our most important target in this battle. On the left side, with Jingtai's department, with Ma Huaide and Li Weixian's department, attacked Gu Yin and Dielide's two divisions. The Khitans on the left had about 120,000 people, the largest number of Khitan troops. However, they fought many times with Ma Huaide and Li Weixian's subordinates, and they were defeated repeatedly, so it would not be difficult to fight. On the right side, with Zhang Qi and Jia Kui, a total of 80,000 people, attacked the Xi army. There are about 80,000 Xi people, and the military food has been insufficient for a long time, and most of the army has been killed in Malaysia, and the combat strength is insufficient. Although it was 80,000 against 80,000, this dynasty still had the upper hand. Wu Song in the south and Zhang Yu in the north, a total of 100,000 cavalry, roamed around the periphery to guard against all kinds of accidents. Where there is a problem, go there to help. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "What about the artillery of Yao Shouxin's department who came a few days ago? How do I step it? ”

Zhao Zi said: "We have discussed, the strongest Khitan is the Yelu Hongji Palace Army, although there are only 80,000 people, but it is not comparable to other armies. Therefore, all thirty invincible thunderbolts were used to attack the middle lane. Half of the cannon in the arch is also used in the mid lane. The remaining half, the left and right sides are disected. ”

Du Zhongxiao thought for a while and said, "In this battle, the most important thing is artillery. If the artillery is used well and the casualties are not large, it will be won. ”

Zhao Zi nodded: "We think the same way." Tomorrow's attack, first under the cover of infantry, will press the Khitans in an area about five miles wide from north to south. And set up gun emplacements and fire at them. Then the infantry advanced, the artillery slowly stepped forward, and finally the Khitan army formation was all within artillery range. ”

Zhao Zhen said: "Human life is at stake, if you can win with artillery, use more cannons." There are so many cannons in the Gong Holy Army, they have to use them. ”

Han Qi said: "The Khitan went south this time, and it was really not as good as expected. There are a lot of shells, gunpowder, and the like prepared by this dynasty. After this battle, there may not be such a big battle for a long time, so it's a pity not to drop it. In tomorrow's war, we must try to use as many shells and gunpowder as possible. ”

Zhao Zi said: "The layout of this battle is mainly artillery. The main thing after the foot is to protect the gun emplacements from being disturbed by enemy troops. ”

Seeing that everyone had no objections, he asked Yao Shouxin to come forward and explain the detailed deployment of the time together. The artillery of the Gongsheng Army and the artillery of various armies were mixed, and the battlefield was centered on the artillery position. Each gun is numbered one by one, its respective position, how it moves, which infantry cooperates, and how it advances. The advance of the various guns was unified, and it became the plan of the whole campaign.

Han Qi, Song Zhen and others saw such a detailed battle plan for the first time, and they watched it with relish. They don't see the meaning of each step, they just think it's hilarious, they think it's very powerful. Du Zhongxiao and Fu Bi knew a lot about the war and carefully examined it.

Zhao Zhen personally recruited, and Zhao Zi worked hard this time. Every step is very thoughtful, and the steps are very detailed, even those who are not familiar with the war can understand it. The position of each army and what it is going to do are clear.

In fact, the battle plan made by Zhao Zi was detailed to the actions of each division. But today, I will mainly talk to Zhao Zhen, and it will be good to talk about it only approximately. The specific actions have been said too much, but Zhao Zhen doesn't understand, and it makes it easy to get upset.

After everything was finished, Zhao Zhen nodded and said, "Okay, I will fight like this tomorrow." In this battle, the Khitan army will be destroyed here! ”

Du Zhongxiao, Han Qi and others said yes. The voice is loud and impressive.

After all the talking, Du Zhongxiao said: "Your Majesty, since Zhang Qi entered Wuqing, the people in the city have been very happy and have helped our army in many ways. Your Majesty is here, but you can go out to meet the fathers and elders in the city, so as to calm the hearts of the people. The ministers are here, and Zhao Zi and others will discuss tomorrow's war in detail. ”

Zhao Zhen knew in his heart that he was not familiar with the war, and he was just watching the excitement just now. I am here, and it is inconvenient for Du Zhongxiao to talk about many things. did not shirk, took Song Zhen, and accompanied the ministers, went out of the official hall, and saw the people of the city.

Waiting for Zhao Zhen and the others to go out, Du Zhongxiao said to Han Qi: "Xianggong, tomorrow's war is related to the national fortunes of the two countries, and you can't be sloppy." Zhao Zi talked about the general outline just now, and next, we have to take a closer look. ”

Han Qi arched his hand: "Taiwei is the commander of this battle, so he should examine their plan in detail. ”

Du Zhongxiao smiled: "When I was training the camp in Suizhou, I demanded that I should plan in advance and summarize afterwards, and the army must do it." Over the years, they've all gotten used to it. Whether the plan is good or not, whether it is detailed or not, is a matter of war. If you do a good job, all armies know what they have to do in wartime, what they should do, and how to deal with accidents. It was not done well, and when it went to the battlefield, the armies were at a loss and in a mess. ”

In Hequ Road that year, Han Qi once fought with the party with the Yingtianxiang army. He is no stranger to Du Zhongxiao's command of the war. It was also with the merits of that war that he entered the imperial court. However, after so many years, many things in the army have changed, but they are not familiar with it.

Du Zhongxiao turned to Zhao Zi and said: "Tomorrow's battle, I won't say much about the importance, just the principles that must be paid attention to." First, whether you live or die in this battle, you must hold Yeluhongji. Whether he ran away or couldn't find anyone, it was not allowed. Second, we must give full play to the role of artillery and use it to the extreme. If you can use artillery, you don't have to fight with the infantry, so you need artillery as much as possible. Third, the two cavalry units of Wu Song and Zhang Yu on the periphery must block the battlefield and never allow the Khitans to escape. ”

Zhao Zicha sang a promise.

Du Zhongxiao turned to the generals and said, "Tomorrow's battle may be the biggest battle in decades, or even in the past hundred years." It's a great pleasure for you to be a part of it. Tomorrow it is necessary to launch an attack on the Khitan in strict accordance with the plan. Those who do not obey military orders will be severely punished! This battle has been fought well, and you have many military exploits and a lifetime of glory. Something went wrong, don't blame me for being spicy! ”