Hejian Mansion, in front of the Yamen of the new Hebei Road along the border, Liu Ji and his generals stood solemnly to greet the arrival of Zhang Qi and Dou Shunqing.

This is the first commander established under the new Privy Council and the Three Privy Councils, which is not under local jurisdiction and directly under the Privy Council. The following jurisdiction, in addition to Liu Ji's headquarters, there are also Zhang Qi and Dou Shunqing's two armies.

greeted the two and a group of generals, entered the yamen, and sat down in the official hall.

Liu Jidao: "It's October now, and it's winter when you look at it." The armies have not yet completed their deployment, and the cardinal government is urging them very strictly. Today, I summoned you to the stationing of Shang Liang on Hebei Road, as well as all kinds of matters. ”

Not long after Zhang Yu's army arrived on Hebei Road, there were still some soldiers and horses on the road. After listening to Liu Ji's words, he said: "Captain, our army is newly transferred from the Western Regions, and I don't know the military situation on the Hebei Road. How to place, please also ask the commander to instruct. ”

Liu ordered people to hang up the map of the border area between Hebei Road and Khitan, and said: "Dou Shunqing's department is stationed in Zhendingfu and Dingzhou, and is stationed along the newly built railway line. From Yuanshi County in the south to Wangdu County, the prefectures and counties 50 miles away from the railway did not garrison troops and horses, but handed over to the localities. Zhang Qi's department was stationed in Baozhou, Guangxin Army, Ansu Army, Shun'an Army and Xiongzhou, and was stationed in various important places. Our troops and horses are stationed in Mozhou and Hejian Province. ”

A group of generals obeyed the order.

Dou Shunqing said: "Zhending Mansion also has to guard against roads in the mountains. It's just that this year, it seems that only Zhuozhou and Yizhou are likely to have Khitans go south. Dare to ask the captain, will it still be the case in the future? ”

Liu Jidao: "Shuai Si will spy on the Khitan military situation, and if there is a change, he will rearrange it." This year, the Khitan did not gather troops and horses, and will not go south in large numbers. Most likely, it is in the area of Zhuozhou, where the Khitans concentrated thousands to 10,000 or 20,000 people and crossed the river. The imperial court attaches great importance to this matter, and official documents are exchanged, and we must be properly protected. If the Khitans come, let them have no return! ”

When Zhang Qi first arrived, he didn't know the situation in this area, so he listened: "We have more than 100,000 soldiers and horses, and 10,000 Khitans come to attack, how can we take advantage!" ”

Liu Ji sighed: "Captain, this matter is not so simple. The meaning of the imperial court, now that we are not ready for war with the Khitan, we had better not cross the border. If thousands of Khitan cavalry, taking advantage of the cold and freezing weather, suddenly crossed the river, where would they have time to face the battle? When we gathered our troops, they plundered and went back. At that time, the Khitans came south unscathed, and their arrogance must be arrogant. ”

Dou Shunqing said: "Don't cross the border, it's difficult to prevent the Khitans from attacking." ”

Zhang Qi is old in the army, so he naturally knows that for cavalry, it is easy to move dozens of miles in a day. If the Khitans secretly assembled on the border and suddenly marched, the defense would naturally be very difficult. Speaking of which, this is a scoundrel play, but what can be done?

Liu Jidao: "To the east of Bazhou, there are swamps and ponds, and there are basically no households. Even if the Khitans go south, there is no big problem. The Khitans knew this, and they had never descended southeast of Bazhou. Therefore, Bazhou Didong will be handed over to the local inspection, and we don't care. In the east, from Beiping on the side of the mountain to Bazhou in the east, about 200 miles away, is the scope of our defense. Shuai Si will pay close attention to the Khitan, once there is a police, you must concentrate your troops and horses in the shortest possible time and surround the enemy army as quickly as possible. ”

Shi Yu, the newly appointed deputy commander of Zhang Yu, said: "The cavalry can be 100 miles a day. Once the enemy army enters the country, it will leave in a day or two, and no matter how fast we react, we will not be able to surround the enemy army. Captain, this is really difficult to do. ”

The rest of the people said yes together. The cavalry attacked in a short way, and it was not allowed to cross the border to chase after it, and there was simply no way to do it.

Liu Ji sighed: "Why don't I know? This time against the Khitan, the difficulty is here. In the past few days, I have thought carefully that if I want to intercept the Khitans, I can only work military intelligence. Knowing where the Khitan is going to cross the border from and start in advance, it is possible to respond in time. ”

Dou Shunqing said: "The Khitan people must be strictly guarded, how can they know in advance?" ”

Liu Jidao: "Shuai Si will naturally do this, so you don't have to worry." Another point is that this matter is due to the surname of taking in the southern escapees, and the Khitans coming south are likely to target them. For these people who fled south, it is always good to make arrangements early. ”

After speaking, Liu Ji pointed to the map behind him and said: "The people who fled south were placed in Yingtian, a place south of Nanyishui, about twenty miles away from Xiongzhou City. In my opinion, if a military camp was set up near them, the Khitans would not have gone if they found out. ”

Zhang Qi listened to it and understood: "What does Taiwei mean, just use it as a trap to lure the Khitans over?" ”

Liu Ji nodded: "Now it seems that the most ideal way can only be like this." More than 200 miles, how to prevent it? But with a place, it's much easier to set up. I can't cross the border to pursue, so I have to make a show this year and let the Khitans go. ”

Hearing this, several generals gathered on the map and talked about it. It was about fifty miles from the border of the Juma River, and the cavalry could reach it in a day. To attack there, the Khitans set off in Pingming and arrived at the place in the afternoon. Plunder all night, and the next morning, you can return. Crossing the Juma River, the Song army could not think of it. If there were thousands of soldiers and horses, or even 10,000 people, the Song Dynasty would not be able to concentrate so many troops in one day.

Zhang Qi looked at it and said, "Except for the nearby Xiongzhou, there are no towns in that area, and there is no garrison. When the Khitans come, as long as they send people to monitor Xiongzhou, they can do whatever they want, which is a good land. ”

Xiongzhou is located on the border, except for Xiongzhou City, there are no counties below, and there are few cities and towns. According to normal practice, the army should be stationed around the city of Xiongzhou, and will not be stationed elsewhere. The Khitan cavalry came and went, and they were really free.

Liu Jidao: "We will discuss this matter again, as long as we know about it." Shuai Si will think of some ways to let the Khitans attack there as much as possible. In the end, the calculation fell through, and it was a dereliction of duty, so you don't have to worry. ”

Everyone said yes and sat down.

Liu Jidao: "In addition to this matter, the imperial court also decided to set up a military academy in Hejian Mansion. It was built according to the Wudu Military Academy on Hequ Road, and the forbidden army on Hebei Road was trained. My army was originally out of Tiandu Mountain, although I took turns to study at the Wudu Military Academy for a while, it was still a little worse. Among your two armies, you should draw out some officers, plus those who come from the winding road, as military academy instructors. This winter, it is most likely that there will be Khitans in the station of Zhang Qi's department, so I won't draw people to come first, and I will talk about it next year. Dou Shunqing's department wants to draw people out. ”

Dou Shunqing arched his hand: "What kind of general do you want, the captain commands." ”

Liu Ji nodded: "Okay, I will order someone to send the people who need them to the Taiwei in a while." Being an instructor in a military academy is different from a leader, and you need someone who learns well. Your department is to select thousands of people from the military academy in the capital, and choose those who have studied well in the military academy. There are more than 200,000 forbidden troops on Hebei Road, and more than 100,000 teaching and reading troops, according to the will of the imperial court, these people are trained into three armies, a total of 150,000 people. Together with our 150,000 army, there are 300,000 troops on Hebei Road, which is enough to prevent the Khitans from moving south. This is a big deal, and there must be no mistake! ”

This is the most important task of Liu Jishuai, much more important than other things. With the progress of the training of the forbidden army in Beijing, the forbidden army on Hebei Road and Hedong Road must also complete the training. In two or three years, the old forbidden army will be eliminated.