. 5

Li Jing thought for a moment and arched his hand: "Your Majesty means to attack it unprepared?" ”

Liu Ziqiu nodded: "What the eldest brother said is right, it is to attack him unprepared." Luoyang is a bustling city, merchants come from all over the world, and there are not a few Goryeo merchants. And many families like Goryeo maids, and there must be a lot of them in your family. I'm not saying that these people will definitely report the news, but there must be Jiān sent by Goryeo among them. Otherwise, the army of the imperial court had not yet arrived, how could they have withdrawn so quickly? By now, the Koreans should have known that we would use troops against them after opening the Chūn. What do you think will happen if my army suddenly appears in Liaodong at this time? ”

Wei Chigong stroked his palms and laughed: "Yes, yes, yes, hit him off guard!" ”

Zhao Ling frowned: "The soldiers and horses have not moved, and the grain and grass go first." Although Jixian County and Liucheng County have accumulated some supplies, I am afraid that it will still be difficult to support a big war. I hope Your Majesty thinks twice! ”

Liu Ziqiu said with a smile: "Before the Chūn Festival, I ordered a large number of supplies to be transported to Jixian County, just to cover people's eyes. This time, the troops against Goryeo were not needed. After speaking, Liu Ziqiu's face suddenly became correct: "Wen Hao, Jiao Liyan listen to the order!" ”

Wen Hao and Jiao Liyan stood up from their seats together and said loudly: "The minister is here!" ”

Liu Ziqiu waved his hand and said, "Raise a thousand soldiers, and use them for a while." The nomadic cavalry has not experienced a major battle since its formation. This time, let the two of you lead 50,000 nomadic cavalry as the vanguard, and recapture Huaiyuan City within fifteen days,"

In the battle to pacify the Central Plains, Liu Ziqiu never used the powerful army in his hands, because many of the nomadic cavalry were of different races, and he did not want to use foreign people to kill Han Chinese. Goryeo is different, in Liu Ziqiu's eyes, he is also a foreign race, and there is not much psychological burden to use nomadic cavalry to fight. At the same time, the nomadic cavalry not only has the mobility of ordinary cavalry, but also has a strong adaptability and patience, and is best at fighting in extremely harsh environments. Of course, these nomadic cavalry under Liu Ziqiu were much more powerful than the cavalry composed of those herdsmen on the grassland. This strength is not only reflected in equipment and supplies, but also in training and combat quality. The dispatch of such a powerful armed force as the vanguard shows the importance that Liu Ziqiu attaches to Goryeo.

After receiving the order, Wen Hao's face was quite calm, but Jiao Liyan couldn't hold back his excitement and said loudly: "Please rest assured, Your Majesty, the minister will definitely dedicate the head of the King of Goryeo in front of the palace!" ”

"Soldiers, you can go home and pack up now, and set off immediately!" Liu Ziqiu waved his hand and said to everyone, "Three days later, I will personally lead an army of 100,000 to conquer in person. No one is allowed to divulge the contents of today's court meeting, otherwise they will be punished as collaborators! ”

……

The climate in Liaodong is indeed harsh, with strong winds blowing snowflakes all over the sky, and there are almost no people on the opposite side. However, the nomadic cavalry of the Han Dynasty also often trained in the ice and snow of Mobei, and they were not afraid of this environment. On the contrary, in this environment, they also feel like they are at home.

At the front of the team, Wen Hao spread out the map in one hand and held a compass in the other, repeatedly identified the direction, pointed to the east, and said: "After crossing this mountain range, we will arrive at the junction of the territories of the Xi and Khitan tribes." Let's work hard and make sure to climb this mountain before it gets dark! ”

The three armies shouted in unison and rode forward. The fierce wind and snow soon drowned out the shouts of the soldiers, and even the sound of horses' hooves could not be heard.

This time, Liu Ziqiu demarcated the marching route for Wen Hao and them to go out of Yanmen Pass and enter Mobei, and the assembly place was the moraine selected by the original invasion of the Central Plains. After the army arrived at the moraine, it went all the way east along the border between the former Great Sui and the **Turk, and finally came to this three-regardless area. The reason why he did not take the normal route was to be more secretive, on the other hand, the grassland was more suitable for nomadic cavalry, and the most important reason was that Liu Ziqiu wanted to give the Goryeo people a severe blow this time and annihilate all the Goryeo troops who invaded Huaiyuan!

The Goryeo people were very cunning, and when faced with powerful Han reinforcements, they would choose to take the initiative to retreat, and when the Han reinforcements were withdrawn, he would make a comeback, repeatedly, which was overwhelmingly disturbing. If they wanted to completely annihilate the Goryeo army that had invaded Huaiyuan City, they had to try to make a detour to the east of Huaiyuan City and block their retreat.

Even for the nomadic cavalry, who lived and trained on the steppe all year round, the road was not easy to follow. After all, this road used to be a border, inaccessible to people, and there are many unknown variables, especially in this cold and harsh winter. However, in order to cope with the severe cold that may be encountered, the nomadic cavalry of the Han army has long been armed to the teeth. They all wore silk underwear and thick cotton socks, three layers of leather armor lined with down liners, and a wolf skin jacket for the best warmth on the outside. Despite adequate preparations, there were still frostbite attritions along the way. By the foot of the mountain, more than a thousand soldiers had already been forced to leave the group and enter a nearby tribe to recuperate. And the loss of horses was even greater, originally three rides per person, but now it has become two rides per person.

However, Wen Hao was still full of confidence, because after crossing this mountain, they would enter the territory of the Khitans. Under the heavy snow, the soldiers chewed off pieces of jerky and tried their best to replenish their energy. Because everyone knows that the mountain will be colder than the mountain, and the test for them has just begun. Along the way, there were constantly soldiers who wanted to stop and hug each other to keep warm, but they were all dispersed by the officers who led the team with leather whips. In this case, just stopping often means death. It was a test of will and physical strength, and most of the soldiers persevered after a long and arduous training. But after crossing the mountains, the 50,000-strong army was again reduced by more than 2,000 men. And more than 2,000 people were not as fortunate as their comrades, who were left forever on that snow-covered mountain.

Over the mountains, the wind and snow gradually stopped, and a round of sunset hung on the top of the mountain. Wen Hao ordered again: "Set up camp and leave early tomorrow morning!" ”

This is the first time since the departure that the nomadic cavalry of the Han army has officially set up camp. Along the way, they all took out a snow nest casually, and squeezed together for a night. And Wen Hao also decided to officially set up camp because he knew that climbing this mountain would make everyone's consumption great, so that everyone could recover quickly. And further down, they will enter the territory controlled by the Khitans. In order to avoid causing unnecessary trouble, they will not camp again, and this is the only time they will be able to get enough rest.

For this opportunity, the soldiers cherished it very much. Especially the war horses that they regard as partners need such an opportunity. Along the way, the loss rate of war horses was much higher than that of soldiers, because the ice and snow cover was too thick, and it was difficult for war horses to find grass under the snow layer. The starving horse's ability to withstand the cold was reduced, which caused such a large loss. Now, most of the remaining 100,000 war horses are also emaciated, and next, they will go out of the control of the Han and face more severe challenges. At this time, it is necessary to let the war horse regain its strength as soon as possible to adapt to the upcoming brutal battle.

On this night, the soldiers contributed their most precious fried noodles to their respective horses. This is also the nomadic cavalry, if it were to be replaced by other troops, they would definitely rather give up the jerky than waste fried noodles. This is the difference between the long-term diet of nomadic and agrarian peoples.

Inside the big tent of the Chinese army, the lights were bright, and Wen Hao and Jiao Liyan were both wearing helmets and armor, staring at the huge map in front of them with solemn faces. The map had been refined by the scouts in light of their newfound information, and was much more detailed than before, even the camps of some nomadic tribes were clearly marked. These camps are important, and they can rush into them to get supplies when necessary. To put it more bluntly, it's to grab it! They were originally nomadic cavalry, and local supply was originally an important feature of nomadic cavalry warfare.

Of course, Wen Hao's gaze did not stop at the campsite indicated by the small black dots now, and his finger fell on a curvy blue line: "After dawn, follow this river all the way to the east!" As he spoke, Wen Hao's fingers also followed the blue sè curve, and then suddenly turned around, and said: "From here, turn south, and go straight to the east of Huaiyuan City!" ”

The river represented by the east-west blue sè line is called weak Luoshui, which is a large river that runs through the entire Khitan territory. During this season, the river must have formed a thick layer of ice, and marching along the frozen river, although the horses' hooves are slippery and their speed is limited, they are not prone to deviation in direction. What's more, in winter the river freezes and few people come, so it is possible to maintain a secret march without being discovered. In the same way, Wen Hao's route to the south was also a river, which the locals called Liaoshui.

Jiao Liyan frowned and said, "Your Majesty has only five days left for us, and if we take this route, I'm afraid we won't be able to follow it." ”

In these five days, they not only had to rush to Huaiyuan City, but they had to take Huaiyuan City. Although Huaiyuan is only a small border town, they are nomadic cavalry, and they are good at field warfare rather than attacking fortifications. In order to deal with special situations that may arise, you must leave some preparation for yourself in terms of time, at least one day, which is the bottom line.

The reason for the current situation is also because they underestimated the difficulties of marching in the snow, and delayed too much time on the Mobei border.

Wen Hao slapped the table fiercely: "I can't wait!" If you take other routes, you are likely to get lost, which is even more costly. Tell the soldiers, let them show the courage to fight with the sky, and from tomorrow, march day and night! ”