Fanzhi is a small county in the mountains, built along the Hutuo River. The county seat is located in the mountains, and the population is sparsely populated, and Jia Kui's 50,000 troops cannot all be stationed in the county seat, so they can only set up villages around it. Jia Kui led people to arrive, and the magistrate and the county officials welcomed them outside the city early.

Entering the city gate, Jia Kui saw that the city was deserted, and said: "There are no merchants here, and many materials in the army can only be transported from outside." ”

Yang Fangdao, the magistrate: "Taiwei, Fanzhi is just a small border county, and the population under its rule is small, so it is naturally not as prosperous as the big city." ”

Jia Kui nodded, knowing in his heart. There are only more than 2,000 households in Fanzhi, and they can't even compare with a township in later generations, and it is already a blessing to have a county seat on the border. Relying on the local population, how can it be possible to support its own army? When I think of the bad road, I can't help but feel upset.

It's just that it's easy to transport grain, but now in the army, there are many kinds of supplies of guns and ammunition, and it is not easy to transport them from outside. Fortunately, he arrived a few months in advance, and if the matter came to an end, he suddenly marched, but it would be troublesome.

When I arrived at the county office, when the reception banquet was over, Jia Kui said: "There are many military villages under the rule of this county, please know that the county will call all the village owners tomorrow and meet me." When the army came to this county, there were a lot of things to prepare, and they were most afraid of leaking the news. ”

Yang Fang said yes. This is a border county, and Yang Fang himself is also a military general, and he is also in charge of the county's soldiers and horses, and is in charge of the armies of each village. It is separated by a large mountain from the Khitan, where there is no interaction between the two countries, and the population does not communicate. As long as it is commanded, it is difficult for the Khitan to get the news.

When Yang Fang said goodbye, Jia Kui said to Hao Qian: "In such a small county, there are 50,000 troops stationed, and the supplies outside are indispensable every day. Tomorrow, the grain and grass official Peng Yin arrived, and he commanded him again. Whatever is missing, it must be shipped in advance, and the autumn war must not be missed. ”

Hao Zhi said: "This is a remote border, and there were no merchants to transport goods back and forth in the past, and the roads were not repaired, which is indeed not easy. If not, how could the Privy Council have allowed us to be here now? There are still a few months before autumn, and it comes early, and it is not easy to be discovered by the Khitans. ”

Jia Kui shook his head: "Even if the Khitans knew, they wouldn't take it seriously. How can you know so clearly about the affairs of the enemy country? ”

A few years ago, some people once fabricated rumors, saying that the Khitan had gathered troops and horses, which caused great fear in the imperial court. A few months later, I learned that it was a rumor. In this era, the speed of information transmission was not comparable to that of later generations, and even if the Khitan got the news that the Song Dynasty was concentrating troops and horses in Fanzhi, it could not be sure whether it was true or false.

This is different from Hebei Road, Hebei Road is all plains, and there are two losers, and the people are constantly coming and going, and the information is relatively difficult to hide. It is not uncommon for the two countries to be cut off from transportation, and no one has been in contact with each other for decades.

Standing up, Jia Kui looked out the window and said: "Fanzhi is a small border county, I see that there are only one or two inns in the city, and there are few shops. When a large army is stationed in the city, there must be chaos. Tomorrow, the two of us will take a look at the area of the bottle-shaped village in the east. Try to build a few barracks in the vicinity so that the army can be stationed nearby. Use the next two months to figure out the surrounding geography and make a good plan for the war. ”

Hao Zhi said yes.

Jia Kui said again: "Also, bring Peng Yin, let him figure out the geography here, and decide how to transport materials in and how to distribute them." For more than two months, all the preparations must be made. Just wait for the court to give an order, and then kill it! ”

An army of 50,000 must make a plan if you want to take the Lingqiu Road. How many people are used in the forward, how to ensure supplies, how many people are in the Chinese army, and how many people will follow. It is impossible to get the whole army together. The road was too steep for a large army to move. However, there were not many Khitan defenders on the opposite side, and they relied on fortified cities to defend them. As long as the army brings artillery, it is not difficult to break through.

In the Privy Council, Du Zhongxiao ordered a separate courtyard in the Privy Council to serve as the headquarters of the First Battle of the Autumn War. ordered Li Zhang to do his best, and in the next time, he must find out all kinds of information about the Khitan's terrain, troop deployment, and officials in Youzhou. All the roads where the army can be marched, where it can be stationed, and how the supplies will be transported must be planned in advance. It can't be until wartime to find out what is not clear.

In less than ten days, the small courtyard began to take shape and became the command center of the Privy Council. In the daily affairs of the Privy Council, Du Zhongxiao mostly let Tian Guo take care of it, and most of his energy was spent on the war with Zhao Zi and Fu Bi.

Entering the small courtyard, the main room is a large hall with a rough sand table on the large table and a large map hanging on the wall. The house on one side is the staff officer, who processes all kinds of intelligence and draws up battle plans. On the other side are logistics officers, who plan the transportation of materials.

Du Zhongxiao and Zhao Zi stood in front of the sand table, discussing the upcoming war.

Zhao Zi said: "If the Khitan mainly attacks Baozhou, it will be defended for a month, and when the battle situation is stable, the army will go north from Xiongzhou and take Zhuozhou." It is best to surround the main Khitan force in the area of Yizhou. If Jia Kui takes the flying fox in the east, it will be a siege in several ways. ”

Du Zhongxiao shook his head: "The enemy is surrounded in Yizhou, and the roads in the mountains are difficult to block. The main Khitan force is cavalry, if we enter Taihang Mountain and go north to Fengshengzhou, we have no choice. The most important thing in this battle is not to crush the enemy, but to encircle and destroy the enemy. ”

When Zhao Zi heard this, he couldn't help frowning: "If that's the case, it's a little difficult." Youzhou is a vast area, and it is really difficult to surround and kill the enemy. Moreover, the Khitan cavalry moved quickly, and once they retreated, it would be difficult for us to catch up. Even though Youzhou is the land of the Khitan, they are afraid that it will be regarded as an ordinary thing. If you want to chase, I'm afraid it's hard to catch up. ”

Du Zhongxiao nodded: "Not bad." Therefore, we must do our best to surround Yeluhongki! Capture the thief and capture the king first, as long as Yelu Hongji can't escape, the other Khitan troops will not dare to retreat. The two emperors have been fighting for several years, and the current Khitan should not dare to abandon the lord of the country. ”

Zhao Zi looked at the map and was silent for a while. After a long while, he said, "What does the captain think, what should it be?" ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "If the Khitan attacks Baozhou, abandon the Guangxin Army and the Ansu Army and attract the Khitan main force to Baozhou City." Baozhou arranged all the armies to defend the city. At the same time, sufficient mobile forces were arranged around it to step forward at the right time to fight a decisive battle with the Khitan. At the same time, the main force of the army quickly moved north from Xiongzhou to cut off the Khitan's retreat. The army of Baozhou wanted to make the main force of the Khitan lord unable to move, and the army of Xiongzhou going north should cut off the Khitan return road as quickly as possible. At the same time, Jia Kui's army went out of Wuhuiling to occupy Bauhinia Pass. In this way, he can fight a decisive battle with the Khitan in the Yizhou area. As long as the Khitans are left with a way out, there will be endless troubles in the future. ”

Zhao Zi sighed: "This is very difficult to do. If the Khitan army came from all over the country, I am afraid that there will be an army of three or four hundred thousand, and it will not be possible to be all under the city of Baozhou. Otherwise, in a month's time, his military supplies would also be difficult. ”

Du Zhongxiao nodded: "Yes, so the most likely thing is that the Khitan will come in two ways." From Baozhou to Xiongzhou, they were attacked everywhere. At that time, where to retreat, where to defend, and where to attack, there can be no mistake. Only by besieging the Khitan lord can a counteroffensive begin. ”

While speaking, Du Zhongxiao looked at the sand table. The most important thing is not where the Khitans attacked, but where the main force of Yelu Hongji would be. As long as Yeluhongji is captured, the Khitans will not be able to escape.

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