Recruiting Zhang Xianzhong's love will make this premise more difficult, and the people who were still amazed just now will calm down again, as far as Zhang Xianzhong's current dependence on Ai Nengqi is concerned, he is now the third person who is actually in power in the Pseudo-Western Dynasty, if according to the number of troops under his control, Ai Nengqi will still become the most powerful general in the Pseudo-Western Dynasty, and he will be stupid enough to surrender to the Ming Dynasty.

Wang Lanping also thought about it in his heart, although he couldn't conclude that this matter was absolutely impossible, but anything was possible before the battle plan was decided, even if Ainengqi could really be submissive, the premise was that he still had to count on the battlefield.

Wang Lanping saw that the generals would not speak, so he said, "What Zhongyi Hou said is exactly what I want to say, the Jianmen Pass is solid, but once we break through this pass, it will be a horse Pingchuan, and the cavalry can come to Chengdu within three days.

Regardless of whether the sword can be closed or not, Li Dingguo's thinking is feasible, take shortcuts, try to avoid siege battles, Zhang Xianzhong is known as a million army, if he can open the formation and fight with me, I am not afraid of him, but he will be a million troops stationed in hundreds of large and small city passes, and the division of troops is lacking."

The most taboo thing about a long-distance expedition is the division of troops, especially if you go deep into the enemy's territory to fight.

And as the defensive side, either a male and female, or divide the troops to guard, and slowly consume the other party with a fortified city, it cannot be said which of the two methods is better, the battlefield is like this, and the process of no war is completely similar.

Wang Lanping pointed to the sand table and said to the generals, "My idea is that the army is divided into three routes, with the water division up the river, advancing by land and water, reaching Xiangfan, entering Kuizhou, cutting off the water and land roads of the Qing army's Azig retreat to Jingzhou, but not confronting him head-on, forcing him to either fight with the Western Army in Shunqing and Ainengqi, or go west to Hanzhong and join Wu Sangui at Jianmen Pass."

Zhenjiang Water Master Zheng Hongkui said, "Azig has 150,000 horses in his hands, if he defeats Ainengqi, what will happen?"

Although the miniature Sichuan terrain on the sand table is very vague, the general context can still be seen at a glance, and Wang Lanping found someone from the Ministry of Industry to make it according to the Sichuan topographic map.

Wang Lanping said, "You also underestimate Hong Chengchou, although the Qing army has been fighting all the way from Jingzhou to Sichuan, it is equivalent to not encountering Zhang Xianzhong's decent resistance, but why does Hong Chengchou not take a shortcut, he has to go around in such a big circle and send troops from Hanzhong"

Fang Guoan said, "What does the prime minister mean that Hong Chengchou didn't plan to enter Sichuan from Shunqing from the beginning? ”

Wang Lanping nodded and said, "That's for sure, the purpose of his big circle is to avoid Yangping Pass, I even suspect that Azig didn't plan to enter Sichuan at all, just to confuse Zhang Xianzhong, attract the strength of the Western Army, so that Hong Chengchou can successfully capture Jianmen Pass, and his goal has also been achieved, Ainengqi, a tiger general, was firmly dragged in Shunqing by Azig."

Zhang Mingzhen on the side groaned, "It makes sense, I said why the military report I received from Shunqing recently said that the Qing army was not moving, at first I thought it was because the grain and grass were not continued, and I never thought about it."

Wang Lanping said, "If it were me, I would not enter the Sichuan from Shunguan, after passing Shunqing, there is the Jialing River, there is the Wushan Mountain Range with high mountains and dense forests, and there are 100,000 mountains in front of it.

And I just want to go straight behind Azig, strangle Kuizhou, force him to move, and disrupt Hong Chengchou's deployment, you say, if you are Hong Chengchou, you will speculate where I entered Sichuan, or I didn't enter Sichuan at all but took Hanzhong"

Yang Wencong, the commander of the Pingyuan battalion, pondered, "According to the current situation in Sichuan, the best route is as the prime minister said, when it is to go up the river, advance by land and water, rely on each other, it is estimated that we can reach Kuizhou within a month and a half, but we have to pass through a lot of Qing army garrison areas along the way, it is not easy to pass, if we go completely by land, even if we can reach Sichuan, it is estimated that the war over there will be over."

Wang Lanping nodded and said, "So my idea is to divide the troops into three routes, two roads along the west of the Great River, try not to clash with the Qing army, the same, we are not like making enemies everywhere, he Hong Chengchou does not want to become the target of the public, everyone's goal is Sichuan, who is forced into the other party's camp, that is no one wants to see"

Cao Dingjiao said, "What about the other way?" ”

Wang Lanping pointed to the sand table and moved slowly, "The other road is completely by land, mainly cavalry, lightly armed, first take Binzhou, get in touch with He Tengjiao, the governor of Huguang, and then bypass the Xiangfan battlefield, and go straight to Yunnan and Guizhou, everyone has heard what Zhang Mingzhen said, the enemy defense in southern Sichuan is empty, maybe we can find another way from there, capture Luzhou City, an important town in southern Sichuan, and take Chengdu along Lushui"

Hearing this, some of them nodded, and some of them were silent, this strategy of marching is too bold, once the army is separated, if Hong Chengchou is miscalculated, then Azig has an army of 150,000 in Shunqing, he wants to suddenly turn back to Kuizhou and attack Ming instead of attacking Ai Nengqi, and it is not too late to rescue this way through Yungui, the two armies are too far apart, and the division of troops cannot be divided into this procedure, and the conditions for cooperation are not met at all.

Seeing that everyone was noncommittal, Wang Lanping smiled and said, "What, do you have any questions about this strategy?" ”

Zhang Mingzhen said, "Prime Minister, this road will not encounter the obstruction of the enemy, you can make such a detour, and it will take four months to reach the battlefield at the earliest, in four months, it is difficult to ensure that the Jianmen Pass will not be broken by Hong Chengchou, the Jianmen Pass is lost, Zhang Xianzhong has no danger to defend, even if you take Luzhou, it is meaningless, I think that the army is still advancing along the Yangtze River waterway, first take Xiangfan, Kuizhou, and then act as the top"

Zhang Mingzhen is worthy of being a scheming and calculating, and he strives to be steady and steady every step, and his opinions attracted everyone to nod their heads, but Li Dingguo's Wang Lanping did not say a word.

Zhang Tongchang, the commander of the Yangtze River Defense, said, "Prime Minister, although the Ming Naval Division does not dare to say that it is invincible in the world, but if you want to compete on the Yangtze River, no one can beat it."

The people present all the generals who commanded the troops opened their mouths, and the meaning was obvious, they did not approve of the division of troops, let alone a detour to Yungui.

Zhang Bingzhen, the commander of the Zhenyuan battalion, arched his hand and said, "Prime Minister, my subordinates are not in favor of dividing troops, our troops are insufficient, and the situation in Sichuan is so complicated, too scattered troops will be dangerous."

It can be seen that everyone's worries are justified, I have never seen such a division of troops, the two armies march thousands of miles apart, this should be called a two-way attack, the result is that both roads are due to too few troops, and the labor is fruitless.

Wang Lanping saw that everyone disagreed, so he turned around and walked back to the desk, "Everyone sit down and say, dividing the troops is not my idea on a whim, and I also know that it is very dangerous, but as long as the forces of the waterway can suddenly arrive in Kuizhou and set up a formation before Azig can react, he will be helpless."

Zheng Sen said, "Even if the waterway march is fast, it will take more than a month, and the waterway march can't be silent at all, during this time, how can Azig watch the back road being cut off, he only needs to send 10,000 people back to defend Kuizhou, even if we rush to Kuizhou City, there is nothing we can do, let alone force him to go west into Yangping Pass."

Wang Lanping said, "That's right, Governor Zheng's concern is completely reasonable, Azig will definitely return to Kuizhou, but you have forgotten one thing, as soon as Azig moves, what will happen to Ai Nengqi who is facing off in Shunqing?" Sit idly by, I don't think so, this person is in charge of the entire eastern Sichuan army, he can mobilize hundreds of thousands of troops at any time, our army is marching under the banner of Sichuan counterinsurgency, and has not yet torn up the face with the Qing army, you say, Hong Chengchou will watch Azig fight with us and don't care, no, Hong Chengchou is not stupid, he will not fight on two fronts, so, I expect that Azig will either advance westward, or defend in situ, contain Ainengqi, and will never start a war with our army, and our army will not encounter any resistance when it enters Kuizhou"

Yang Wencong shook his head again and again, and said in a loud voice, "It's too risky, it's too risky, Prime Minister, your strategy is completely pinned on the premise that Hong Chengchou will not fight on two fronts, if he does not hesitate to start a war with the puppet West and my Ming Dynasty at the same time, you know, the battle of Yangzhou has only been half a year, and the Ming and Qing dynasties are still mortal enemies."

Wang Lanping said, "Wrong, there is no eternal enemy in this world, only common goals and interests, the reason why Hong Chengchou wants to capture Sichuan first, what he is afraid of is that Sichuan will fall into the hands of the Ming Dynasty, and now if he dares to make enemies on both sides, he is not afraid that Zhang Xianzhong will join forces with me to destroy him in Sichuan?" If you think about it again, Hong Chengchou is a general, and he can get such reuse in the Qing court, why? Just because he can still serve the Qing court, but he can't be defeated, there will be no day to turn over once defeated, and I, Wang Lan, have lost a hundred times and are also the prime minister of the Ming Dynasty, my soldiers will become more and more courageous, and he is more and more suspicious and dissatisfied with the Qing court, and he will never dare to start a war with the Ming Dynasty without an absolute chance of victory."

This time, everyone no longer refutes, the war is a big gamble, and until the war is over, all deductions are meaningless.

Yang Wencong said, "Even if Azig doesn't dare to start a war with us, have you ever thought that even if we rush to Kuizhou, we will also send troops from Yungui to capture Luzhou by land, but how many troops do you plan to divide along the way?"

Wang Lanping said, "5,000 fine riders, 5,000 foot armor"

Zhang Mingzhen's eyes widened when he heard this, "Prime Minister, there are still 20,000 Western troops in this Luzhou city, and even if you can get away with Luzhou, with this person, how can you fight Chengdu, there are at least 80,000 defenders in Chengdu City, and Zhang Xianzhong can transfer troops from the surrounding Chengguan at any time."

Wang Lanping waved his hand and stood up, "I am determined to make a decision, let's plan around this strategy from today, Chen Yongji, the director of the Ministry of War."

A person in the last row of the seat flashed out and arched his hand, "The lower official is here"

Wang Lanping said, "You immediately order, open the armory, distribute all the ordnance to the battalions, the day after tomorrow morning I will go to the camp to inspect, if you find that there are weapons and other things, you know the consequences."

"The subordinate officials dare not derelict their duties"

Wang Lanping turned to Zheng Sen again, "Zheng Sen, the left director of the Military and Political Division."

"Subordinate in"

"Immediately order all battalions, regardless of whether they are all officers and men to return to the camp and rebuild by this evening and go to the armory to collect the necessary things, and the deadline is one day to complete, and all those who fail to do so will be killed."

"Yes!"

Wang Lanping said to Zheng Hongkui again, "Zhenjiang Water Master Zheng Hongkui"

"The last general!"

"Overhaul the warships, prepare supplies, and your two hundred warships will escort the army from the waterways"

"Yes!"

After Wang Lanping finished speaking, he didn't care about everyone's opinions, and said directly, "Okay, let's go and prepare, I will inspect the barracks the day after tomorrow, and give me some energy."

"Command!"

Everyone left one by one, but they heard Wang Lanping shouting in the hall, "Li Dingguo, Song Xian, stay"

When everyone left, Li Dingguo and Song Xian glanced at each other, came to Wang Lanping, and said in unison, "What is the matter with the prime minister calling me?" ”

Wang Lanping changed his seriousness just now, and said with a smile, "Song Xian, don't be angry when you go back later in the evening."

When Song Xian heard this, he smiled awkwardly, "Why does the prime minister ask that?" ”

Wang Lanping said, "If you don't have anything to do at night, accompany me to a place, you are different now, your wife is pregnant, by the way, where is the next month?" ”

As soon as Song Xian mentioned this, his face was full of happiness, and he arched his hand and said, "At the beginning of spring next year, I will invite the prime minister to enjoy his face and drink a cup of happy wine."

Wang Lanping laughed, "Okay, you must go, you must go, the import of Tianding is a big deal, people, fight all your life, for the sake of your wife and children, you accompany me to Li Dingguo's mansion at night, Dingguo, don't bother."

Li Dingguo hurriedly said, "The prime minister is here in person, and it is shining, and I can't invite you on weekdays."

Wang Lanping took a book of folds in his hand and said with a smile, "You, you've been an official for a few days, and your words are so clichéd, just walk around, go to your house to beg for wine and food, don't make a show, just the three of us, let Ruxue fry a few side dishes, let's talk."

"Yes," Li Dingguo bowed.

Wang Lanping's fake face changed, "Look at it, what are you doing with such restraint, I said it was a light meal, tell you, don't be extravagant, three dishes and a pot of wine, three men chat for a night, ah, let's get busy, Song Xian, see you at the Zhongyi Marquis Mansion in the evening"

**

In the evening, Du Ningning put back the clothes she wore when she first entered the Dingguo Mansion, walked on the steps of the gate again and again, and looked at Liren Street outside the mansion from time to time, with a nervous face, and the maid Ah Xiang followed closely with her burden.

Yun Niang and Fang Ling hid behind the door and watched all this quietly.

I don't know how much I walked in and out, Du Ningning suddenly stopped, snorted like a turn, twisted his waist and ran into the door, and said to Yun Niang and Fang Ling, "This, does this really work?" ”

Fang Ling said, "You have to try, sooner or later he will know about it, rather than be discovered by him, it is better for you to take the initiative to admit it, you are pretending to leave, he must be soft-hearted, hurry, go again, he will be off duty soon"

Du Ningning's face was full of distress, "But what if he doesn't keep me if he gets angry?"

Yun Niang chuckled, "It's okay, Xiangye likes you so much, even if he doesn't keep you, I'll help you speak, quick, quick, stand at the door, and go out as soon as you see him"

Du Ningning snorted again, causing the guards standing guard on both sides to secretly laugh.

At this time, there was a sound of horses' hooves on the street, and the maid Ah Xiang had sharp eyes and said urgently, "Miss, it's Fang Guard"

When Fang Ling heard this, it must be the prime minister's value, and he hurriedly said, "Quick, go out"

Du Ningning hurriedly ran to the steps, Yun Niang and Fang Ling also lost no time in running out of it, and the two of them grabbed Du Ningning's arm one by one.

Yun Niang said, "Sister Ning Ning, don't go, how dangerous the road is, if there is anything to say, don't go"

Fang Ling over there also said, "Yes, you have to leave, Yun Niang and I will have no company, don't go."

The three of them pulled and pulled like this, and waited until they got off the horse by the pile in front of the gate.

Seeing that he was the only one, Fang Ling looked down the street again and asked, "Brother, where is the prime minister?" ”

He said, "The prime minister said, he will come back later tonight, let me inform you, what are you doing here?" Miss Du, you, where are you going? ”

When Du Ningning heard this, his mouth puffed out, and he ran back to the courtyard on his feet, Ah Xiang quickly followed, "Miss, wait for me"

Yun Niang sighed, "Alas, I'm busy in vain" (to be continued.) )