Shi Le suddenly met Zu Ti, it was inevitable that he was frightened, although he had excellent psychological quality, his face was like water, he did not show it, and he was still able to command freely, but most of the soldiers under his command were panicked. So after a fierce battle for half a day, he retreated three times, and although he refused to admit defeat, his morale did suffer a heavy blow invisibly.

Therefore, Shi Le summoned the generals that night, and he could show two postures: first, panicked, and reprimanded Zhang Jing, saying that our gamble was basically lost, and then asked the generals whether they should continue to hold on or withdraw from the army? The second is to stay in danger and not be chaotic, trying to boost morale, and strengthen the generals' heart to continue the war.

Anyway, it was originally a big gamble, and now that the cup has just been revealed, I still have a lot of chips in my hand, and I may not have a chance to turn the tide of the battle. The more strong the pressure, the more courageously we should move forward, if we retreat to Xiangguo, then it will be purely a situation of being forced to fight!

Shi Shilong was not a coward, so he couldn't help but look up to the sky and laughed: "The ancestor is a genius in the world, and he can set up this trick to deceive me. Is he thinking of me as Zhao Kuohu? ”

Then turned to Zhang Jing, and said, Zhang Zhongshu will tell the big guy the story of Bai Qi and Zhao Kuo.

Most of the Zhao generals here are old and coarse, and they are not like Shi Le, even if they don't plan to read and read, they like to listen to people talk about the ancients. So, I guess some people don't know who Zhao Kuo I just said is, Zhang Jing, you can explain it first.

Zhang Jing had exhausted his wits at this time, and he was worried that Shi Le would blame him, so he felt a little helpless. However, Shi Le's attitude reinvigorated his courage, so he rose up to give a salute, and then concisely recounted the events of the battle of Qin, Zhao, and Changping.

Shi Le said: "But it's not Zhao Kuo, I have to be Lian Po at least - He Qin people have to use counter-plots first, so that Zhao Kuo will be quite a general, and then secretly make Bai Qi to Changping?" It can be seen that if Lian is not good, even if he starts in vain, he has no chance of winning, so he is unwilling to damage his prestige. ”

Bai Qi is a victorious general, at least according to the records in the history books, he has never lost a battle in his life, and the Qin people also used Bai Qi's prestige to deter the Kwantung princes. If it is easy to start with white, and Bai Qi will not be able to open the situation for a few months, and if he will not be able to open the situation for a few months, he will lose his own prestige, and if he says Dali, Qin has lost a magic weapon that will scare the princes as long as it is sacrificed - at least there is no longer the same strategic deterrent as before.

Therefore, Shi Lecai said, I am not Zhao Kuo, at least I have to be Lian Po. The Zhao army is in Changping, if the pure Rong is strong, the Qin people are not easy to destroy, and they must be lured to fight before they can be expected to encircle and annihilate it. Lian Po doesn't go, Zhao Kuo doesn't come, even if Bai Qimi comes to the front of the army, Zhao Ren will not go to war - what if Bai Qiru is exposed in advance? What's more, it is estimated that even if Zhao Kuo is opposite, he will not come out.

Shi Le's words are that Yunji's army still has the strength to fight, and it may not be lost. Of course, the Battle of Changping was defended by the Zhao army and attacked by the Qin army, and the current situation is that the Jin army defended and the Zhao army attacked, which is not comparable at all.

He just encouraged the generals and said: "I have always fought viciously in my life, and the stronger the thief, the more courageous I become." If there is only Xu Liu in front of him, even if it is interesting, it is not enough to show off, even if he advances into Luoyang, he still has to face the Jin aid in Guanzhong. Now face to face for the ancestors, if they can fight and win, the Jin people will inevitably be frightened, the soldiers will become Gao, and Sima Ye will abandon the city and flee. Then I will go west according to Luoyang, Hanoi and even Hedong, and I can only retreat into Guanzhong and hold on to me for a long time. ”

The implication is that are you afraid of your ancestors? What's so scary, it's a good thing that Zu Ti is here.

"Since you have come here with me, are you willing to do your best to break this robber for me?"

Since the king of heaven asked, who dared to say the word "no", all the generals immediately bowed their hands together and swore an oath: "Please be the first of your majesty's former widows, so as to dedicate your majesty to make our emperor Zhao fight and shock the world!" ”

Immediately, the general Ge Bo said: "However, Jin Kou has a strong city as a basis, and Juan County and Yangwu as an echo, if he faces the enemy head-on, he can retreat into Xingyang if he is frustrated, and it is not easy to break - and he should plan carefully." ”

Shi Lenai asked Zhang Jing with a smile: "Zhang Zhongshu is my staff officer, do you have a plan to break the enemy?" ”

In fact, Zhang Jing has been thinking about this problem since he knew that it was not Xu Liu in front of him, but Zu Li, and after a little groaning, he immediately arched his hand and said: "The minister misjudged the thief before, thinking that Zu Li was still crippled, and Xu Liu in front of him would be cowardly, and it would be easy to break it - the crime of this minister"

Shi Le waved his hand: "I can't expect the firewood of the ancestors, but Cheng Ziyuan is far away, and I am negligent, what is Qing's crime?" Needless to say, just say that in this situation, is there a good way to break the enemy? "In this case, you can't criticize Zhang Jing harshly, but you must first take the responsibility yourself - or push it to Cheng Yao, who has not been on the expedition - only in this way will you not move Yin's heart or hurt Zhang Jing's loyalty.

Zhang Jingnai said: "In response to the situation, the military should be urgent, and when it should be slow, it should be slow. If the face is willowy, the only way is to move forward; If you are facing your ancestors, you must be cautious. Surrender, the city must not be attacked. ”

In the east of Xingyang City, there are three fortresses of Li, Long, and Guan, which are horns with each other, and are connected by Yongdao, and the three forts are not down, so Xingyang City is not easy to attack. The army deliberately made a detour to the south first and attacked Guancheng, because Guancheng was the farthest away from Xingyang, and it was inconvenient to respond. After the city was put under control and the city was restored, more than half of the fortifications on the outer defense line of Xingyang City were stripped away, and the remaining Licheng City could not be captured for the time being, but it was also possible to monitor it.

Of course, this is the march route planned by Zhang Jing for Shi Le when Xu Liu was determined to be the chief general of the Jin army. But now that he knows that the enemy in front of him will be Zu Ti, judging from this, the morale of the Jin army must be high, and its command must be agile - the battle of the day can prove this. In the face of such a strong enemy, it is not very safe to hit the fortified city directly with his head covered, so Zhang Jingcai suggested that we have to take down the city first-

"Go down to the city first, then Xingyang is urgent, and the wild fortresses are lost, morale will also be frustrated, and then attack Xingyang, it is relatively easier∫ I occupy the three cities of Li, Long, and Guan, and I will not be far away from Jinkou, disturbing my back road, and the main force can detour north and attack Aocang"

Ao Cang is a cangcheng built in the Qin Dynasty, located in the north of Xingyang City slightly west of the Ao Mountain, just at the confluence of the Yellow River and Jishui, the geographical location is very important∝ after the first emperor unified China, that is, set up a warehouse on the Ao Mountain, used as an important dump point for the grain and straw materials in the eastern part of the country through the river, Ji and to Yuluo, Guanzhong.

Zhang Jing analyzed: "Jin Kou grain, from Luoyang east to Xingyang, to first from Yishui, around the Gao into the river, first store Ao Cang, and then from the land to the south, the most convenient, if I capture Ao Cang, or can get a lot of enemy grain." And even if the thief has not yet stored grain in Ao, he can also cut off the grain transportation road on the river∫ I Zhao grain straw, mostly from the south of Xiangguo to the Yellow Pond, into the white ditch and to Fangtou"

In the Hebei region, although most of the terrain is plain, and the roads are divergent, after all, it is still time-consuming and laborious to transport grain by land, and the carts and horses are still laborious, 500 miles away, and more than half of the road is damaged. Therefore, since ancient times, it has been customary to use the water system in the territory to carry materials, and even artificially dig canals to facilitate grain transportation.

The most important river in Ji County is Qishui, which comes from the north mountain of Taihang, winds southeast, and finally flows into the Yellow River. Therefore, in the ninth year of Jian'an in the Han Dynasty, Cao Cao entered the Yuan brothers in Hebei Province and ordered people to build a weir with large fang wood near the mouth of the Qishui River to block the water flow, so that the Qi water would be injected into the Baigou in the east, and the amount of water would be increased, so that the trough could be transported from the eastern part of Ji County to the Yellow Pond in the middle of Wei County, which increased the waterway by 200 li. From this, its place is named - Fangtou.

In addition to the early grain supply to Leling, the follow-up will be temporarily collected in Neihuang County near Huangchi, preparing to respond to changes in the situation, through the waterway, through Fangtou, directly to Ji County. Because according to Zhang Jing's strategy, the Zhao army must pass through the north of Yanzhou along the river to the west as quickly as possible, and enter Sanyang and Chenggao - it is estimated that the farthest will be a long battle here, if it can break the Jin defense, it can advance into the Yiluo Basin, and this battle will basically be half won. Therefore, the grain and straw gather in Ji County, which is convenient to cross the river through Tongguan and arrive in Xingyang.

Zhang Jing therefore suggested that if Aocang was seized and used as a grain storage place for the front line of the Qiang army, then the two hundred miles from Tongguan to Aocang could be transported by water from the Yellow River.

"Take Aocang, can make the Jin grain long distance, and our army's grain transportation∫ if you send troops from Aocang, directly take Chenggao, then Xingyang will definitely divide troops to resist. In this way, the enemy will be weakened, or I will have a chance. ”

Shi Le pressed the map with his hand, pondered for a long time, and finally nodded: "This plan is very good." Aocang is indeed a strategic location, and it must be taken. ”

After that, Zhang Jing said: "I thought that Xu Liu was in front of him, and it was not difficult to break it, but our army was a long drive, and regardless of Su Jun, he deserved to stop Xu Gong." However, judging from today's situation, Xu Gong can't resist the Qingzhou soldiers, and I am under Xingyang City, or it will be delayed a little, if Su Jun passes through Puyang, it will inevitably be dangerous after disturbing me. Before attacking Rouci, Su Jun patrolled Mount Tai and did not dare to go north to help, because he knew that he was cowardly, and he was not worried. However, Zu Ti was a general, or he would strictly order Su Jun to come to the west, but he did not dare to disobey. When the division of troops or aid Xu Niche, or guard Yan County, it is more secure to protect Thorn Jin. ”

The corners of Shi Le's mouth twitched: "Su Junxuan, and let it be rampant for a few days, when I break the ancestor first, I must behead him in a battle, so that the people of Qing and Xu dare not look at each other!" He immediately sent an additional army of soldiers and horses to save Xu Gong.

——————————

Besides, after Zu Jun successfully repelled the Zhao army, he returned to Xingyang City, and also consulted with the generals, saying: "If Su Jun can approach Yangwu, then I will be alive all over the plate, why won't it be for a long time?" After a pause, he added: "He is cunning, but he should not have high hopes, and I should continue to stop the thieves and try to destroy them." ”

Xu Liu persuaded him: "The current situation is still favorable to me. Between Yuluo, this autumn is ripe, grain and materials are transferred to Xingyang, but only 300 miles, and the thief transports grain from Hebei, the road is twice as large as mine, plus there are many soldiers, and the loss is four to five times. Then you only need to hold on to the thief for a long time, but within three or four months, the enemy will retreat, and when the time comes, you can expect a big victory. In this way, it is a perfect strategy, and Ming Gong should be careful not to go out lightly. ”

Zu Ti waved his hand and said: "What Qing Zhi said is the art of war, but it is too conservative. If you can't take this opportunity, you can greatly kill and injure the people and extinguish their spirit, lest Shi Le retreat back to Hebei, resist in danger, and come back when the time comes. And if you can break the thieves in Xingyang, you can hope to throw them all in, and even drive the country to Xiangguo for a long time. ”

He judged that after Shi Le's setback today, he would not dare to attack Xingyang City again for the time being, but would turn to attack Licheng, in order to sweep away the last important fortress outside the city - "Before the city and Longcheng, the defense was not strong, and the victory was not urgent, and it was also a thief; Now in Licheng, you can no longer afford to lose lightly, I should personally lead the main force, frequently go out of the city, to disturb the thief array, to aid Licheng. But the city is not lost, and Shi Le is powerless in the end, and his anger is self-defeating; Even if you lose again after a hard battle, you can take the opportunity to kill and injure the thieves, which is beneficial to me! ”

So the goal of the Jin and Zhao armies turned to Licheng almost at the same time, and from the next day, they launched a fierce offensive and defensive battle. After all, the Zhao army claims to have 300,000 soldiers, and the actual soldiers who can fight are only one or two percent more than the Jin army.

During this period, Wei Ce of Juan County and Zu Ji of Yangwu also opened the city many times and fought each other, so as to contain the besieging Zhao army, unable to go west to reinforce the main force, nor could they attack the city with all their might. The battle has been at a stalemate.

By the middle of October, finally, Pei Gai, who was in Jinyang, also knew the news of Zu Li's recovery, and couldn't help but be overjoyed.

He was already thinking that although he didn't study in his previous life, he couldn't remember the year Zu Shizhi died, but based on the relevant events, he still had to have two or three years of life. And originally in history, when Zu Ti and Shi Le reconciled and plotted Liu Yao, when he had a good chance of recovering Henan, the Jiankang regime was busy pulling back his legs, planning to order Dai Yuan as the governor to unify the ancestral army. And on this timeline, the situation is even better, and no one is holding back - Pei Cai naturally doesn't do it, and the Xun family doesn't have that qualification - how can he hide and checkmate?

In the original history, after Zu Ti fell ill, he had a premonition, so he sent his wife and children to the foot of Damu Mountain in Runan, far away from the bloody battlefield in the Central Plains. The scholars of the Central Plains were shocked by this, "Xian said that he should enter the military prison, and put his family in danger", and advised one after another, but Zu Ti didn't listen at all - why didn't he listen? Because he understands that his life is coming to an end, and with the state of the Jiankang regime, no one can take the burden on his shoulders, and the Northern Expedition will eventually come to naught

But in the past two years, although Zu Ti is sick, he has not acted like a decadent Tang Dynasty, and he has not told anyone about the future⊥ Pei should have a perception of Zu Ti, if he really knows that he can't afford it, he will definitely hand over the right to discharge the army, so as not to delay state affairs - at least he will dictate a letter to himself, talk about the arrangements behind him, and talk about the arrangements behind him.

Yu Jin's belief couldn't help but look up to the sky and laugh: "Shizhi is so strategic, he even deceived me!" He didn't know that when the news reached Chang'an a few days in advance, Pei Wei couldn't help but feel stunned

Mobile Reading Access: M.