In the thirty-seventh year of the first emperor, the Xiongnu, who had been silent for four years, suddenly attacked, and the 300,000 army crossed the desert, and launched an attack on the border counties of Daqin together with the Aries Department and the Loufu Department of Monan, and the border counties that had been peaceful for a long time suddenly burst into smoke.

Shangjun, Fushi City, Northern Xinjiang Daying.

There are more than a dozen generals of the Qin army surrounded by a huge sand table map, and the eight border counties of Great Qin are depicted on the sand table, and the Qin army legions spread out on both sides of the Great Wall are inserted on the sand table with small red flag logos, which is clear at a glance.

Su Jiaozheng frowned and looked at the sand table, a huge 'Chuan' shape formed at the center of his eyebrows, and he scolded and said in his mouth, "What kind of epilepsy wind did the Huns have, why did the whole clan suddenly invade, and without any warning, they came back from Mobei." ”

Shijian also frowned and said; "This time the Huns seem to be serious, no longer a small fight, to change the past, we can't ask for it, just to finish the battle, but now ......."

raised his eyes and looked at Wang Li, who was sitting in a handsome position, lowered his head and said; "Now the general doesn't know whether he is alive or dead, the soldiers have a lot of speculation and panic, and the attitude between us and Xianyang is not very clear, they are all on guard against each other, if the army is dispatched at this time, the chances of victory are not very good."

Wang Li still didn't speak, just looked at the sand table intently. In fact, the reaction of the Huns was expected by him, and it can even be said that he single-handedly contributed to it.

The system of the Qin State was different from that of any other country in the Kwantung region, the Qin people established the country on the basis of military merits, and the state mechanism in wartime was entirely for the service of the army. In the Battle of Changping, Qin's population was only 5 million, but it could support the supply of 500,000 troops for several months of labor expeditions. Although after the unification of the six countries, the idea of governing the country under the military system has been weakened a lot, but in the border army, it still follows the original Qin state.

Therefore, Wang Li will release the news to lure the Xiongnu to the south, once the northern army is transformed into a wartime system, the 300,000 army and all the decision-making power of the eight border counties will be firmly in the hands of his Wang Li, and all his subordinates have to do is to obey the orders of his commander.

The Qin army attached great importance to military regulations, and there were usually local supervisors and civil officials who restricted his rights, and generals and county lieutenants in various places would also disobey him. But when it comes to wartime mobilization, it is completely up to him, the commander, to have the final say, so Wang Li will deliberately want to provoke the Xiongnu to go south, so as to firmly control the northern army and prevent any changes in Xianyang.

But now that the Xiongnu are really going south, Wang Li is a little at a loss. He pondered for a long time, but still couldn't figure it out, so he raised his head and asked Su Jiao and Shijian: "What do you think?" ”

Su Jiao said in a rough voice; "What else can I do, fight, the Huns are coming to the door."

Shejian has always been a wise general in the Northern Army, and most of the things that Sima is engaged in are similar to the chiefs of staff of later generations. He pondered for a moment, and said slowly; "Lao Su is right, the fight is definitely going to be fought, the question is how we should fight and how to fight."

When he looked up and saw Wang Li looking at him thoughtfully, he didn't hide his secrets anymore, and told all his thoughts.

"The Huns are going south this time, and they have a momentum of ambition. The 300,000 army, plus the Aries King and the Loufu King, the total number is not less than 400,000, and there is Donghu to help the battle, which has exceeded the number of our northern army. Moreover, the Huns are all cavalry, on the other hand, most of us are soldiers of the eight counties, and the main army is only more than 100,000, so they can use the mobility and flexibility of the cavalry to form an overwhelming force advantage over us locally. ”

Su Jiao nodded, he had been partnered with Shijian for nearly ten years, so he could naturally guess his thoughts. Sidewalk; "I know what you mean, instead of our army being exhausted and rushing around to rescue, it is better to firmly clench into a fist and force the Huns to fight a decisive battle with us."

After saying that, he clenched his five fingers and slammed his fist on the table, "In this way, we can break the main force of the Huns in one fell swoop, instead of chasing each other with the Huns on the grassland, so that they can take advantage of mobility." ”

Wang Li listened to the opinions of the two, thought carefully for a long time, and made a decision, so he said: "Let's let the soldiers outside the Great Wall withdraw first, refuse to defend along the Great Wall, and temporarily avoid the edge of the Huns." Zhao's rear army first withdrew to Jiuyuan, refused to defend Henan, and waited for the army to go north to make peace. ”

Saying this, Wang Li stood up, and all the generals also stood up. "Order the five counties of Youbeiping, Yuyang, Shanggu, Daijun, and Yanmen to gather troops to protect themselves and strictly defend the city. Quliang's advance army quickly retreated from the banks of the Luoshui River, and the various divisions of Shangjun were ready, and three days later the army marched north to Izumo. ”

The generals in the tent agreed loudly, but they had doubts in their faces and gave up; "Marshal, I don't know how many soldiers and horses you plan to go out of the clouds."

Wang Li thought for a while, and then said; "There are three armies in the left, right, and middle of the city of Fushi, plus the retreating front army, and after arriving in Jiuyuan, it will join the rear army of Zhao Ji, and then count the county soldiers of Shangjun, Jiuyuan and Yanmen, about 200,000 troops."

"Two hundred thousand." Shijian pondered for a moment, his face worried, "The grain stock in Shangjun is only enough for 200,000 troops to eat for a month, and once the war drags on, I am afraid that the food will run out." ”

Shejian is the marching Sima and is in charge of the logistics in the army, so he knows the most about grain storage. Wang Li didn't think about this, and only then did he remember when he heard a reminder from Shijian.

In ancient warfare, it was not only about the number of people, combat strength, and the command ability of the generals, but also a very important factor was whether the logistics supply was smooth. The so-called 'the three armies have not moved, grain and grass go first', before the mobilization and assembly of troops and horses, grain and grass are a problem that must be solved. In peacetime, the army is stationed in the city, and it is not very difficult to get food on the spot. But when it comes to wartime, especially when the enemy fights abroad, the supply of grain and grass becomes the top priority. In order to ensure the physical strength of the war horses, the war horses are fed with concentrate during the war, and the soldiers' meals will be increased by half compared with usual.

The grain production of several counties in northern Xinjiang is not high, and their self-sufficiency is still insufficient, let alone supporting hundreds of thousands of troops. Therefore, the grain and grass of the northern army were continuously sent from the granary in Guanzhong to the north through the straight road. However, since the new emperor succeeded to the throne, the rights of Xianyang changed, and the attitude of the northern army was ambiguous, so the matter of supplying grain and grass was temporarily shelved, and the army's grain storage was only enough for February and January during wartime.

Seeing Wang Li's frowning, Shijian reminded again; "Whether we want to inform Xianyang and resist the Xiongnu is not only the responsibility of our Northern Army, but also the responsibility of the entire Great Qin."

Wang Li looked up at Shijian when he heard this, and heard that there seemed to be another meaning in his words. Shen groaned; "We will report to Xianyang, and I expect that Your Majesty will never abandon our northern army. However, even if the grain and grass in the pass are delivered, it will take half a month, and we will send troops on the seventh day at the latest, and the water will not quench the thirst of the near. ”

"Move more."

A Qin soldier stood up and replied. "The end will be."

"You took the left army with a scepter and went to the neighboring counties of Taiyuan, Hengshan, and Guangyang to get grain, and you must return within five days. If the local magistrate does not cooperate, he will dispose of it himself. ”

"Yes." Yue Qian answered loudly, took the scepter of the commander of the Northern Army, and turned to leave. ”

Jing Jun looked at the back of Yue Qian leaving, his heart was very complicated, and reminded Wang to leave the way; "Great. We have not received the will of the imperial court to requisition the military rations of the counties, and we are afraid that such a rash requisition will touch Your Majesty and anger the imperial court. ”

Wang Li didn't care, just shook his head and said; "I have my own opinions."

Seeing that Wang Li was like this, Jing Jun stopped talking. He is Wang Li's confidant, and he has bet on him, if Wang Li is on the throne, he can also rise to the top. If Wang Li loses power, he will not be able to escape the involvement of his most confidant. So no matter what Wang Li decides, he will support it, even if it is to turn his face with Xianyang.

Seeing that Wang Li had already made a decision, Su Jiao and the others didn't say much, and left one after another, and each returned to the camp to prepare.

Wang Li thought about it in the tent for a long time, until the corners of his eyes were sour, and he realized that the sky had darkened. Marching and fighting is not his forte, although he has read military books since he was a child, but he has never independently commanded a major battle, so he thought carefully about it so possible, so he left with confidence.

As soon as he left the camp gate, he saw a figure outside the door quickly welcoming him, Wang Li frowned, and he had already recognized his son Wang Jing.

Wang Jing waited until Wang left him, and shouted impatiently: "Father." ”

Wang Li snorted coldly and said; "Presumptuous, there are only generals in the army, no father and son, you are just a military marquis, but you don't salute when you see the marshal."

Wang Jing knew that his father had always been harsh on him, so he had no choice but to bend his knees and kneel down on one leg, and said reluctantly; "Marquis Wang Jing of the third battalion of the right army, I have seen the marshal."

Wang Li snorted again and said coldly; "You don't train well in the army, why did you come to the big tent of the Chinese army."

Wang Jing's eyes flickered, leaned forward and whispered; "Father......" Seeing that Wang Li's face was tense, he was about to get angry again, so he hurriedly changed his words; Marshal, I heard that the army is going to war, right? ”

Wang Li's face was displeased; "It's not something you should care about." Wang Jing laughed a few times, stepped forward and grabbed Wang Li's hand, this time he didn't care that Wang Li was angry, and pleaded; "Father, let me be a pioneer this time, I don't want to be a guard anymore and hide behind the army as a shrinking turtle."

Wang Li's face straightened, wanting to shake off his hand but couldn't. I had to say slightly angrily; "How can it be child's play when the march is a big event, this commander has his own arrangements."

Wang Jing pouted; "You have your own arrangement, you think I don't know you, you must have arranged me in the safest place in the army like last time."

Saying this, Wang Jing suddenly raised his voice. "Father, I am the eldest son of the Wang family, and my great-grandfather and grandfather are the mighty Wang Jian and Wang Ben, and their children and grandchildren will be protected like women in the army, and after the battle, they will fight with the warriors who charge first."

Wang Jing's face was red, his tone was excited, and he waved his fist and said: "Father, have you ever thought about my feelings, I don't want to be pointed at behind my back and say that I am a second ancestor, I want to make contributions by myself, and rely on my own talents to live up to the prestige of the Wang family." ”

After speaking, Wang Jing knelt down on his knees. Bow your head and say; "Please be a father and a son, and don't be a useless child of a family anymore."

Wang Li looked at Wang Jing who was kneeling on the ground, he didn't speak for a long time, but he was a little relieved in his heart. This son has grown up in the end, he is much more ambitious and brave than when he was younger.

The young eagle has plump feathers, and it's time to let it fly alone.

Thinking of this, Wang Li nodded, "Okay, I will greet Jing Jun and ask him to give you the opportunity to go into battle to kill the enemy and make meritorious contributions." ”

Wang Jing was overjoyed when he heard this, stood up and said loudly; "Thank you, Father."

PS: A little note. After the death of an ancient emperor, for example, in January, his era name was still used for that year. After the death of Qin Shi Huang, that year was still the thirty-seventh year of the first emperor, and the next year's New Year's Day would be changed to the first year of the second Yuan Dynasty.