"Commander Yu, the commander of the garrison of Qingfeng Village is asking to see you outside." "What?" Yu Wentao stood up: "The son of Dingguo Gong? He came first. Invite him in. - No, no, I'll go to meet him at the camp gate. ”

Yu Wentao rode to the gate of the camp, only to see that you were wearing soft armor, with Wu Shun and five or six guards, and had already dismounted and stood at the gate of the camp, waiting for his arrival.

You look at each other. At a glance, they both have a good impression of each other.

You clasped your fists and saluted: "Tang suddenly visited, and first confessed to the commander." Along the way, seeing that the Yukou is well defended and thoughtful, it is really a one-man pass, and it is not open. Yu is experienced in command, resourceful and sophisticated, and sincerely admired. ”

Yu Wentao also returned the salute with his fists, and said with a smile: "The young man's horse team charged at the bottom of the mountain, the ground shook the mountain, and the momentum was like a rainbow, almost knocking down the cliffs in my camp, it was really murderous and unstoppable." The young boy is eloquent and strategic, and Yu also sincerely admires it. ”

You smile at each other. Yu Wentao said: "Please talk about it in the young man's camp." Say, "Commander, please." ”

"I heard that Brother Yu is a cheerful person, so let's get straight to the point. Today, I came to visit, first, I wanted to give Brother Yu a gift, and second, I also asked Brother Yu to do me a favor. ”

"The young man is too polite. Yu is willing to hear the details. ”

"Brother Yu has been stationed at Huangsangyukou for many years, and the confrontation with the enemy army is far from stopping once, please consult Commander Yu, what is the biggest disadvantage of our side in the past battles?" You ask.

Yu Wentao thought for a while and said, "The biggest disadvantage is passivity. Yu Wentao said: "In fact, the camp of the defenders of Yukou is located on a high place, with a wide field of vision, and we can see clearly in advance every attack of the enemy. However, we did not take advantage of this predictable time to the fullest. ”

He said: "There are two reasons why we cannot give full play to the time advantage: first, most of the defenders are infantry, and they do not have enough flexibility to take the initiative to outflank or intercept the enemy; The second is that the defenders' weapons are not good enough, the range is not long enough, and the power is not strong enough to strike the enemy army before they advance close enough, nor can they destroy their attack ability with a single blow. ”

Yu Wentao said bitterly: "And the enemy is often all cavalry, when advancing to the range position, if we can't destroy their attack power with one blow, they will quickly advance to the melee distance, storm the camp gate, and engage in hand-to-hand combat with us, so, every time we attack, our defenders have suffered heavy casualties, and we have to pay a heavy price to hold the pass." From here to the halfway up the hill, every inch of land was stained red with the blood of our soldiers. Every time you clean up the battlefield, it's a heartbreaking moment. ”

"So, does Commander Yu have any good solutions?" You ask.

Yu Wentao sighed and said: "I have repeatedly asked the imperial court to deploy cavalry troops in Yukou as a response to the infantry, but they have all been lost in the sea and there is no response. The king of the new Han Dynasty did not like cavalry, thinking that it was a barbarian style, and the young prince should have experienced it. The king of Han didn't even want to read the mention of cavalry, and he didn't want to approve it, so where would he equip us with cavalry troops. ”

You smiled. You say, "Why should Commander Yu go far and ask Yu Blind?" ”

Yu Wentao was puzzled: "What does the son mean?" ”

You said: "The cavalry that Brother Yu wants, there is exactly one below, and now it is on the near side of Brother Yu, although there are not many of them, but they are the elite of the elite." In the future, if there is a war, I will let my brother dispatch me. How is it? If Brother Yu still needs more strategies, the defenders of the towns in Lingnan under the command of my father can also cooperate and fight together. ”

"This" Yu Wentao was surprised, overjoyed, and didn't know how to express his position for a while!

"In addition to the cavalry strategy and the joint operation of various armies, there is another thing below, which can also solve the troubles of the commander."

"What is it?"

"Gunpowder." You say, "Firearms are the faster cavalry than the cavalry, the more powerful weapon than the sabre, and the nemesis of the enemy's cavalry in the rapid charge." The grace of King Menghan, the troops under him happen to have a little, and they can also be dispatched by their brothers in wartime. ”

Yu Wentao stood up suddenly. It was a big gift he never expected. With the help of cavalry and firearms, when the defenders of Yukou fight against the enemy again, they will inevitably be strengthened, and the casualty rate of soldiers will be greatly reduced!

Yu Wentao was stunned by the surprise for a while, and then regained his consciousness and calm.

"The young man is willing to help, of course Yu can't ask for it! It's just that the garrison under the command of the young boy is not a participating army, and there is no combat mission, so the young man doesn't have to take the initiative to risk himself. ”

"If the young prince did not invite the king of Han during the war, and responded to the defenders of our army without authorization, even if he was victorious, he would be suspicious of the king of Han by participating in the war without permission, not only in vain, but also in the past, General Chen Shizhao was a lesson from the past, if he was defeated, the son would be held accountable."

You said: "Under the Huangsang Yukou is the largest Zhuang town in my father's fiefdom, and once the Yukou is lost, Zhuang Town will also fall and fall." Yu is loyal to filial piety, Yu is a friend, no matter whether there is a king's order or not, whether it is dangerous or not, I should be with Yu Commander to share the same hatred and help each other. ”

Yu Wentao said: "The young man has insight into righteousness, is decisive and decisive, and Yu is full of admiration. The cavalry of the young prince was originally the elite of General Sun Zhanming, and the combat power was strong, although the number was small, but everyone could be one as ten, and someone was convinced. It's just that the existing stockpile of gunpowder in the young man's hand must not be very large, and the research and testing of new firearms and blasting techniques are barely available, and if they are used in actual combat, I am afraid that it will not be enough. ”

You say, "Brother Yu is in a word." The amount of gunpowder, that's why I came to visit Commander Yu. ”

On the table is a map of the area around Beitou Mountain. You and Yu Wentao look at the map together.

You said: "Brother Yu, in the past few days since I came back, I have run all over the Beitou Mountains, and I really have a deep worry in my heart. Brother Yu, you have been guarding Yukou for many years, have you noticed that in the past hundred years, Beihu has invaded the Han land, and among the breakthroughs chosen, the highest frequency is Huangsang Yukou, almost every ten attacks, six or seven times will choose to break through from Yukou. The defensive pressure at Yukou was the largest in the entire Lingnan fiefdom. Because of this, the Huaizhou Mansion sent Brother Yu to lead the elite garrison to be stationed here, but did not hand over the defense here to my father and the ten towns of Lingnan to co-ordinate. Why did the enemy especially like to choose Huangsang Yukou as a breakthrough point? It's really because of the Cui family set behind the Yukou, the location is too important. Cuijiaji, where my home is located, is the largest Zhuang town in Lingnan, which is not only very wealthy, but also a major transportation hub for the entire northern route. After the enemy broke through the Huangsangyu Pass, the horse team could condescendingly charge Cuijiaji, and they could use a dense rain of arrows to cross the north gate of Cuijiaji at a high place, directly killing and injuring the defenders in the market town. The defenders are in a very disadvantageous position, once the pass is lost, the barrier is lost, the situation of Zhuangzhen will be easy to attack and difficult to defend, if the defenders of Zhuangzhen have a little mistake, the enemy will drive straight in. After occupying Cuijiaji, they can not only loot floating wealth and get good supplies, but also master a high degree of combat initiative. Starting from Cuijiaji, they can advance in any direction to the southeast, northwest, and northwest, and there are many routes to choose from going deep into the Han land, and if the Han army wants to block, it is difficult to judge their intentions, and it is difficult to quickly deploy troops to intercept and defend in all directions. The Han army will be in a state of passive beating. One step passive, the next step will be passive, resulting in the entire battle situation from the beginning of the decline situation, and it will be much more difficult to reverse it later. ”

Yu Wentao said: "The young man's analysis is very accurate, and this is indeed the case in the offensive and defensive battles in the past hundred years. Yukou is the key to the key. If you lose the pass, the situation of the Han army will be very disadvantageous. ”

You say, "That's exactly what worries you." Yukou is guarded by Brother Yu, of course, it is impregnable, but there are always accidents in everything. In case the pass is lost, it will not be easy for Cui Jiaji in the back, without backup, to block the enemy soldiers independently. Does Brother Yu still remember the raid of King Khan back then? If it weren't for General Chen Shizhao's quick decision, risking his life to save him, and blocking his way forward with his life, the defeat behind him could have been predicted, and maybe even Huaizhou would have been owned by Beihu today. However, General Chen's desperate rescue only solved the immediate need for a while, and did not fundamentally solve the problem. ”

Yu Wentao said: "So, does the young boy want to solve this problem completely? ”

You say, "Exactly." ”

Yu Wentao said: "However, the problem of Cuijiaji's lack of geographical barriers is difficult to solve." ”

You say, "I've been thinking about a possibility these days. Is it possible to artificially create a geographical barrier in this area? ”

Yu Wentao said: "Artificial?"

You say, "The day I came back from Cheongcheon, I encountered a dangerous mudslide on the road. This gave me an inspiration. I looked at the mountains in this area and drew a map. ”

Look at the picture you have drawn.

You said, "Brother Yu didn't find it, from here to here, this mountain, there is a gap from top to bottom." The soil around this gap is very loose, and landslides often occur on weekdays, and mudslides occur frequently on rainy days. The crevice was narrow, but it led to the lake at the top and the bottom to the deepest valley I could go down. If, along the course of this gap, we deploy a large amount of gunpowder here, here and here, at these three points, and detonate it at the same time in an emergency, there is a very high possibility that it will tear this gap and cause a super-large-scale landslide. In the event of heavy rainfall, there will be a huge mudslide. Whether it is a super-large-scale landslide or a mudslide, it will instantly change the geography of this area, and no matter what the effect of the collapse and impact is, this area will appear an unprecedented huge geographical barrier, blocking the path of the enemy's advance. ”

Yu Wentao felt a spring of ice pouring from the top of his head, and suddenly his entire back was cold. He said, "You would think about it." However, if a landslide or mudslide is triggered, isn't the Cui family set under the mountain all finished? Your home, your father's town for many years, and all the people down the mountain will die without a place to be buried. ”

You say, "So, this must be the last resort." If Yukou is lost and the enemy army captures Cuijiaji, what will they do? It must have been a massacre. In the past twenty or thirty years, Cui Jiaji's resistance to them has been the most tenacious in the Lingnan region, and there has not been a time when they have not fought to the death, and the generals who have been killed or injured here have long been more than one or two, and even the King of Khan himself was almost unloaded by General Chen Shizhao here. Cui Jiaji and the Beji people have long formed a blood feud, once they attack Zhuangji again, the Beji people have a great possibility to slaughter Zhuang to retaliate, and it also has a deterrent effect on the Han soldiers and civilians behind. If this happens, and you can't resist it, the solution I just mentioned is the last resort. ”

Yu Wentao looked at you and said, "In that case, your hometown will always be buried under the new geographical barrier." It has since disappeared forever. ”

You say, "Yes." This method should not be used unless absolutely necessary. However, this is the only way to prevent future troubles. ”

You say, "Look at the map again." If the enemy encounters an insurmountable geographical barrier here, their initiative is greatly curtailed. They had no choice but to go east, bypass this geographical barrier, take Linshui directly, break through from Linshui, and then force several other towns in Lingnan, and finally march under Yantang Pass to threaten Huaizhou Mansion. They were left with only this line, which was the most convenient recently. And they detour from here to the water, and a large number of horses will take at least a day at the earliest. This provided valuable time for the Han army to prepare to intercept and set up an ambush. ”

You say: "If one day, for some reason, we completely lose Yukou and Cui Jiaji, this is the way to save the defeat in the end." And to implement this method, I need a lot of gunpowder. These gunpowders, out of fear of the border army's surrender to the enemy, will not be approved by the border army under any circumstances. ”

Yu Wentao said: "How can I help? ”

You say, "Brother Yu, if I write to the court and say that I need to store more gunpowder for actual combat, the king of Han will definitely not allow it." So I need to find another good reason. Soon it will be the 50th birthday of the old queen mother, I want to say to the king of Han, in order to thank the king of Han for his gift, I am willing to present the most brilliant fireworks show for the queen mother at the birthday banquet of the queen mother, in order to carve this grand performance beautifully, I specially apply for more gunpowder for the trial production of large-scale fireworks. I would say that this is the loyalty of the military and people of the entire ten towns of Lingnan to the King of Han, and the common blessing of the Queen Mother. My father will help me find enough civil and military officials and squires to join me and ask the King of Han to give us a chance to express our respect for the Queen Mother. ”

Yu Wentao said; "Sure enough, good idea. So, how would Childe want me to help? ”

You said; "I need to prove it to me. Please Commander Yu also reported to the imperial court that the Qingfeng Village garrison was somehow trying to make fireworks day and night. Please reprimand me in the above table for dereliction of duty, unauthorized change of use of military products, use for entertainment, and waste of gunpowder of the imperial court, and suggest that the imperial court cancel my right to command the army. ”

Yu Wentao couldn't help laughing when he heard what you said: "It turns out that Gongzi is here to beg me to reprimand you." ”

You laugh a little too. You say, "Please don't reprimand me through the normal way of going to the table." If this matter is known to the government and the opposition, it will be difficult for a clear-sighted person to block it. We have to take other paths to reach the king of Han. ”

"So how do we progress to the table?" "Isn't Commander Yu a distant relative of General Manager Li Miaochang? Take this path. My above table will pass through my father, follow the path of the Marquis of Zhaoyang, and pass it directly to the Queen Mother through the Queen, and then the Queen Mother will transfer it to the King of Han. ”

"Good!" Yu Wentao slapped the table and said, "Just do it according to the young son's idea!" ”

You hugged your fists gratefully and said, "Thank you Brother Yu for your help." Although we have to prepare for the worst, after all, this method is too tragic. More importantly, it is still necessary to defend the pass and not let the enemy seize it. The success or failure of Yukou is related to the overall situation, regardless of whether the King of Han has authorization or not, whether he will bear the blame afterwards, he will do his best to cooperate with Brother Yu and jointly defend Yukou. Once there is a war, the cavalry of Qingfeng Village can go around behind the enemy, as a mobile force, cooperate with Brother Yu to attack before and after, and can help Brother Yu to set up an ambush with gunpowder on the mountain road. The next time the war starts, all the troops in Xia and Qingfeng Village who are in need of Brother Yu are willing to lead the horse and work together to fight the fire and never give up!

Yu Wentao was so excited that he held your hand tightly: "The comments of the young son's trip really made Yu Mou suddenly, I think that all these years, I have been waiting for the gift of the imperial court, wasted a lot of time, and made many brothers die in vain, I am really ashamed." I should have done the same as Childe, trying to get the resources for the war myself, instead of sitting here and waiting for the imperial court to give me. From today on, the garrisons of Yukou and Qingfeng Village will be each other's reserves, support each other, share success or failure, advance and retreat together! But if the young son is useful in military affairs, he will also ask the son to give orders at will. ”

Since the deep conversation of this day, you and Yu Wentao have become close friends with similar interests, and the garrisons of Huangsangyukou and Qingfeng Village have been in close contact. You and Yu Wentao often visited each other's camps, exchanged views on the battle situation on the northern front on many occasions, discussed countermeasures, and jointly worked out a joint combat plan for the three garrisons of Yukou, Qingfengzhai, and Cuijiaji to meet the enemy, and led the joint exercises of your subordinates to familiarize themselves with and cooperate. Yu Wentao has been guarding Yukou for many years, and he is very familiar with the distribution of tribal forces that Beji often invades the Han land, and he has a few treasures about the characteristics of their guards, the history and style of each army's warfare. In the close exchanges, Yu Wentao became more and more optimistic about your military talent, and taught you all the things he had accumulated over the years, which was of great help to you in your later battles. Before you went home, you had already studied the battle situation on the northern front quite deeply, but now with Yu Wentao's specific supplements and detailed explanations, you are even more powerful, and you know the enemy's situation well.