After a little greeting, Ma Huaide took the escort staff down and returned to the city together. Today, a celebration dinner will be held, and these people are all heroes of the road construction and are the guests of honor in Xiongzhou. The deputy commander who came with the car made Guo Kui inconspicuous, and after getting out of the car, he met Zhang Qi with the general who was traveling with him.

After entering the back office, Ma Huaide said to Wei Xian, an official of the Third Division, who came with him: "After several months of hard work, it is finally open to traffic today. Judge the seat, drink it today. Xiongzhou slightly prepared wine and food to celebrate your achievements. ”

Wei Xian didn't dare to do it, and after several pushbacks, he sat in the passenger seat with the personnel who built the railway.

Ma Huaide raised his glass and said to everyone: "Since the imperial court built railways and built trains, thousands of miles in the world have also been passed. Today, the train finally reached Xiongzhou, and it will be extremely easy to go to the capital from then on. In the meantime, there is no need to talk about merit. Let's have a drink and congratulate on this! ”

Everyone raised their glasses together and drank with great interest.

After three rounds of drinking, Zhang Yu and Guo Kui said that there was something in the army and left.

left the state office, went to a nearby military camp, and entered Zhang Qishuai's tent. Zhang Qi asked Guo Kui to sit down and ordered tea.

After persuading tea, Zhang Qi said: "How about taking the train today?" We were stationed in two states, and it was much more convenient to have a train in the future. ”

Guo Kui said: "I calculated today, if you sit from Baozhou to Xiongzhou, if you don't stop on the road, you can arrive in about an hour and a half." In this way, although they are stationed in two states, they can mobilize troops and horses at any time. ”

Zhang Qi nodded: "More than 100 miles from the two places, one and a half hours is enough." To lay this railway, Zhongshu has invested in the book, and it is directly a double line. Travel without taking one road, without disturbing each other, much faster than other routes. From Baozhou to Xiongzhou, the route of the Khitan southward was basically blocked. According to the will of the Privy Council, two more cities were built on the railroad along the way, and heavy troops were stationed, and the stations were guarded. In this way, when the Khitan goes south, there will be no loopholes to exploit. ”

Guo Kui said: "I have seen it on the road, and the station is very reasonably built, just build a city near the station." ”

Zhang Qi nodded: "Okay, I'll discuss with a few governors and send people from nearby states and counties to build the city before the summer harvest." Once the city is built, we will seal the roads completely. Moreover, there is a railway to transport grain and grass, which is also much more convenient. ”

Guo Kui said: "Now is spring, not the time for the Khitans to order troops. Youzhou in the north, 10,000 of its soldiers and horses were destroyed last year, and the Khitan did not replenish troops there. Taiwei, did the Khitans admit to this? ”

Zhang Qi shook his head: "The Khitan is different from this dynasty, most of their soldiers and horses come from the grassland. Youzhou is just a people's husband, even if it is a tattoo soldier, most of them are not used on the front line in Khitan. This year, Youzhou was hit by an earthquake, and the grain and grass were difficult, and the Khitan increased troops here, which only increased the burden. Since Tang Longzhen Du Taiwei killed the Khitan lord, the two emperors fought for several years. Now that Yelu Hongji is finally unified, it is the time to establish his power, and suddenly Xiongzhou is defeated, how can he swallow this breath? The fact that the Khitans are not increasing their troops now does not mean that they have forgotten. ”

Guo Kui nodded: "I see." The Khitans have not moved, and there are discussions in the army about whether they will stop there. ”

Zhang Qi said: "It is not beneficial to talk about this matter too much, and it is the right way to step up military training and build a city." A few days ago, the imperial court sent a message, saying that it was about to be reorganized into a Xuanwei Army and sent to Hebei Road. At that time, Dou Shunqing's troops were stationed in Baozhou, and the Xuanwei army was stationed in Zhendingfu and Dingzhou. At that time, even if the Khitan troops came south, they couldn't help us for a while. ”

Guo Kui thought for a while and said, "Baozhou, Xiongzhou, and Hejian Mansion, the three places are not far apart, and there are 150,000 troops stationed, is it too much?" ”

Zhang Qi shook his head: "Today is different from the past, with the railway, there is enough grain and grass, and there is nothing if there are more garrisons." In this way, the front-line army completely blocked the way for the Khitan to go south, and there was a lot less trouble. If the Khitan bypassed and headed south, they could assemble an army and block their way back. ”

Guo Kui said: "Also, the railway can travel thousands of miles in a day, and the Khitans want to sneak attack, but it is not so easy." ”

Zhang Qi said: "After the railway is repaired, the imperial court will send another 100,000 people to Hebei Road, and there will be no fear of the Khitan coming south." At that time, the imperial court was only afraid that it would want to restore Yan Yun's affairs. In the following days, in addition to building the city along the railway, we should also pay attention to the movement of the Khitan in the north. They did not increase their troops, but if they wanted to move south after the autumn, they had to prepare food and grass now. ”

The sixteen states of Yanyun are an important supply of grain and grass to the Khitan, and the army goes south to rely on Youzhou to provide grain and grass. The two emperors have been fighting for five years, and this year was affected by the earthquake, and Youzhou was tired. If the Khitan wants to launch a war against the Song in the next two years, they must start preparing in advance. Not only can the grain and grass in Youzhou no longer be transported out as in previous years, but also from other places.

Grain and grass can't deceive people, as long as you pay close attention to the other side, you can judge the Khitan policy. After the end of the Xiongzhou War, the Song Dynasty no longer allowed two losers under its rule, and closed three fields, and now the two borders are strong. However, no matter how tight the border is, it is impossible to cut off contact. The Song Dynasty still had many ways to get news from the Khitans.

Zhang Qi was stationed at the border, cooperating with the people sent by Li Zhang, and keeping a close eye on the Khitan. But there was movement there, and it couldn't escape his ears and eyes.

Guo Kui was transferred to the army after Zhang Qi returned from the Western Regions, and he was not familiar with the previous situation in the army. He is also studying many things in the army, and he is very cautious. This is another path parallel to the training of military academies, and in the previously organized army, officers are constantly transferred out and the rest of the officers are transferred in. One in and one out, they brought in new units for training and training officers. Otherwise, the training is even slower.

At this time, most of the middle and senior generals in the forbidden army studied in military academies for a short time, and then transferred to the well-trained army. If you learn quickly, there are many inappropriate ones, and they are quickly eliminated.

There were not many middle and senior generals in the forbidden army of the Song Dynasty, and their positions were limited, and there were very few people who could be promoted. A large number of military generals were promoted to a certain level in the forbidden army and then served in local positions. There is a fundamental difference between the positions in the forbidden army and the positions of local leaders are military positions.

In this training, middle and high-ranking generals, regardless of military positions, will study in military academies for a period of time as long as they are willing, and then they will be incorporated into the army that has been reorganized. Those who do well continue to be promoted, and those who do not do well will mostly leave the forbidden army from then on.

After discussing the situation at the border for a while, Zhang Qi said: "The meaning of the Privy Council is that after the railway is opened, another 100,000 people will be transferred to Hebei Road. The armies are no longer stationed separately, but together. Use this time before the fall to rehearse. Those newly transferred officers should familiarize themselves with the work in the army during the exercise. If you can't familiarize yourself, replace it as soon as possible. ”

Guo Kui nodded and did not speak. He himself has not been transferred in long ago, so he naturally understands what Zhang Qi means. The drills in the past few months are not only a process of learning and familiarizing the newly transferred personnel, but also a process of elimination.

Zhang Qi said with a smile: "Since you joined our army, you have always been cautious in doing things, learning from time to time, don't worry." It's just that the generals below should pay extra attention. How they are in the drill, we must see clearly, it is not appropriate to play the court early in the morning, and clear the exit. There is no favoritism in this matter, once a war starts, it is a matter of human life. Remember! ”

Guo Kui forked his hands and said: "Don't worry! The subordinates must do things well and do not go on a business trip! ”

Zhang Qi nodded, looking at Guo Kui without speaking.

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