During the two-day march, Li Shan got along with this group of captains, Li Shan was a casual person, and everyone got along. The important thing is that Li Shan has no official pretensions, not only is he polite to these captains, but he also jokes and doesn't care about his identity.

The captains have greatly changed their opinion of Li Shan, especially Gao Xianzhi, Li Shan knows that this person is the future general of the imperial court, and he has contributed a lot to pacifying Tubo, so he also attaches great importance to him.

"My lord, the lower officer feels that this cavalry focuses on the unity of men and horses, strong combat effectiveness, good mobility, and is the main force in the army, which is the key to victory in the decisive battle between the two armies." One of the lieutenants gave his opinion, apparently he had a soft spot for cavalry.

This is Li Shan exchanging views with the captains and discussing what is the most important thing in the war.

"I think cavalry has advantages, but firstly, the supply of horses is very expensive, and secondly, it is not helpful for attacking fortified positions, and there are many terrain restrictions. On the contrary, the infantry, not only is not limited by terrain, but also has a large number of people, which is the basis of the army, and this is the main thing about the army. Another retorted.

Li Shan looked at Gao Xianzhi, who had not spoken, and said, "You can tell me your opinion." ”

"Lord Qiqi, things on the battlefield are changing rapidly, and the so-called impermanence of soldiers and water is impermanent, and different strategies must be adopted at different times. Therefore, I believe that the most important thing in the army is the commander, and a good commander can correctly command the three armies and give full play to the maximum effect, and this is the key to war. ”

Sure enough, there are generals and commanders, and everyone can show his wishes and preferences when they say something, for example, the first likes cavalry, the second likes infantry, and Gao Xianzhi is quite a general.

Li Shan smiled: "Good opinion, as the so-called soldier who doesn't want to be a general is not a good soldier, it seems that you have a pretty general heart." ”

Gao Xianzhi didn't expect Li Shan to give him such a high evaluation, and he was a little caught off guard. "The lower officials did not have the intention of committing a crime. Just the truth. ”

Li Shan couldn't help but wonder, he felt more and more that there was no vitality in the army, and people like Gao Xianzhi didn't dare to speak out, no wonder the Tang Xuanzong period turned from prosperity to decline so quickly.

Li Shan felt more and more that the embankment of a thousand miles was destroyed in an anthill, and the Tang Dynasty seemed to be prosperous, but in fact, many things were slowly developing in the direction of collapse. Just like in the current army, there is a lack of training, and military generals are not taken seriously.

The military system of the Tang Dynasty seemed to combine agriculture and military affairs, but in fact it was like the Eight Banners cavalry of the Qing Dynasty. In times of war, war is fed by war. In battle, troops are assembled, and when they stop, they are engaged in farming, which can greatly use manpower.

In peacetime, however, this approach not only demoralizes the military, but also allows the ruler to estimate his own power. When the Tang Dynasty was at its strongest, it was claimed that there were millions of soldiers, but in fact, most of these soldiers did not have professional training, or they lost the iron blood of soldiers in long-term farming, and they really did not have much effect in wartime.

The second is the feudal town established by Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty in the later period, which led to the division of the feudal town. The government soldiers became the weapons in the hands of the feudal towns, not the weapons of the imperial court, and you must know that once the military power is sided, the power of the imperial court will be unstable. This is also one of the reasons for the wars in the late Tang Dynasty.

"I'll ask you now, do you want to be a general?" Li Shan looked at Gao Xianzhi and said solemnly.

Gao Xianzhi was taken aback by Li Shan's attitude. I don't know why Li Shan suddenly became so serious. But after all, he was still bloody, gritted his teeth, nodded heavily, and said, "I am willing to lead a thousand troops with a spear in my hand, on Nahelan Mountain." Guarding the border passes, so that the Turks did not dare to invade our Tang Dynasty, and let the Tibetans be frightened. Those who offend me Chinese. Whatever my spear points at, though it is far away, it will be punished. ”

"Okay," Li Shan patted him on the shoulder and said, "You have to remember what you said today, soldiers, you must have blood and backbone." At any time, we must not be weak, we must not grovel, we must wait for an upright and iron-blooded man, this is the heroic style of my Chinese soldiers. ”

Everyone was hot in their hearts, and Li Shan kept instilling in them the idea of being iron-blooded when he was thinking about them. In contrast, in their military mansion, they could only hear the sighs and sighs of their bosses all day long, lamenting that they were born at the wrong time, and some even attached to the elegant dance and writing, which made them feel that Li Shan was a real man.

"My lord, Gao Xianzhi must take your words to heart." Gao Xianzhi was originally from Korea, and came to Datang with his father since he was a child, but because of his humble background, he has been snubbed, but Li Shan favors him, how can he not be moved.

"I'll also share my opinion." Li Shan listened to everyone's opinions, knew their thoughts, and of course had to talk about his own thoughts.

"In my opinion, the most important thing to win a war is intelligence, and all the marching and commanding battles are based on what is known. If we know nothing about the enemy, or if we learn the false information that the enemy has deliberately given us, then no matter how correct the command is, the best troops can lose the battle. The right intelligence can help us understand the strengths and weaknesses of our enemies, and if we find their weaknesses, we can win in a single blow. Therefore, before the start of the war, the preparation of food and grass materials, the most important thing is the spread of the intelligence network. Once we have succeeded in building an intelligence network behind enemy lines, then we will be able to fight the blind as easily as a blind man, and this is the key to victory. ”

Li Shan's intelligence theory surprised everyone. Although Sun Tzu also said in the Art of War, knowing oneself and knowing one's opponent will win all battles, but the understanding of intelligence in ancient times is far less strong than in modern times, firstly, the speed of information transmission is far from the same, and secondly, the establishment of an intelligence network is too complicated.

"My lord, this intelligence network is sure to let us anticipate the enemy first, but how can we implement it?" Gao Xianzhi asked.

Sure enough, in one sentence, I directly saw the fatal flaw of Li Shan's view.

"Yes, the establishment of the intelligence network is definitely not something that happens overnight, but it is actually a necessary thing. For example, in Tibet, the war between our Tang Dynasty and Tibet has lasted for decades, although most of the time Tibet is in a weak state, and has a respectful attitude towards our dynasty, but once they feel that there is an opportunity, or our national strength declines, Tanmen will bite us hard. Just imagine, if we had started to do such a thing decades ago, inserting our intelligence agents in public, or finding people with two hearts in their officials to buy them off, would we have avoided the Liangzhou crisis this time, or prepared in advance? ”

"Your Excellency has a point, but what kind of intelligence officer can be placed for such a long time?" Gao Xianzhi began to agree with Li Shan's concept, but there were no high-level troops such as spies or undercover agents in the Tang Dynasty.

Li Shan briefly said some methods for cultivating spies, which made everyone sigh again, but they didn't expect to be able to do this. If you look like a sibling brother and a confidant of the enemy, you really shudder to think about it. admired Li Shan even more, no one expected that such a weak scholar as Li Shan would have such a unique view on military affairs.

Shen Shixing also talked about the training method that Li Shan taught him in Jingzhou, and everyone was amazed, Shen Shixing's training method was already well-known in the state capitals, but he didn't expect it to be taught to him by Li Shan. (To be continued.) )