Usually when success is only one step away, or when it is close at hand, it will make people impatient; But this is not absolute, for example, after paying a lot of hardships and experiencing the ups and downs of victory and defeat, it will make people feel uneasy and walking on thin ice.

The appointment of Ma Bao, the king of Wei, as the commander-in-chief of the former enemy, Zhu Yongxing was well thought out. Those who can take on this position in official positions and titles are several one-word kings. It is impossible for King Jin, and it is inconvenient for Bai Wenxuan, the king of Zhao, to sit in the southwest, so only Wu Sangui and Ma Bao are left.

As for Wu Sangui, Zhu Yongxing still has a little doubt, and it should be the most appropriate to stay by his side. As for Ma Bao, from the fact that he had the right to self-dismiss before, he knew that he had become a little cautious. Although Zhu Yongxing does not appreciate this, at this time, being cautious is what he hopes for the most.

The confrontation of hundreds of thousands of troops, well, just the confrontation was enough to exhaust the financial and material resources of the Qing court, which had lost most of the occupied areas. Therefore, do not seek to attack and forge ahead, as long as you play steadily, you will already have the chance to win. Of course, this is also a huge test for the logistics of the Ming court, but there are always more ways than difficulties, and Zhu Yongxing does not believe that the Manchu Qing Dynasty will not be consumed.

Therefore, it is very appropriate to choose Ma Bao, who already feels that there is no way to rise and wants to start and finish well, as the commander-in-chief, whether it is from Zhu Yongxing's trust or from Ma Bao's psychological state. Relatively speaking, even the kings of Jin and Zhao may not be more than Ma Bao to hope to achieve a steady victory and draw a successful end to their military careers on the battlefield. He could then enter the military ministry and become one of the top members of the cabinet.

In the cold wind of early winter, hundreds of thousands of troops, dozens of miles of trenches and wooden fence tents, confronted each other on the defense line between the rivers.

There were many big and small battles, and there were casualties on both sides. The Ming army was moving troops from everywhere. They also brought all kinds of artillery from the rear and from warships, preparing to break the enemy in one fell swoop. In the face of the dense deployment of the Ming army, it was difficult for the Qing army to give full play to the advantages of cavalry interspersed with maneuver, so they continued to dig trenches and erect fences to hold on to the Ming army.

The Qing army was no stranger to digging trenches and holding on. It's just that it boasts of the invincible offensive means of mounted archery, which is ignored or downplayed by people. During the Battle of Songjin, the Qing army dug trenches for dozens of miles, cutting off the retreat of the Ming army, resulting in a crushing defeat of the Ming army, and the elite of the nine sides was empty.

As early as that time, the Eight Banners were clumsy and difficult to resist the Ming army's tactics of mainly car battalions and steady progress. Right now. The artillery of the Ming army was sharper, the number was larger, the troops were stronger, the fighting spirit was more resolute, and the logistics supply was more sufficient.

"Long live the Holy Wisdom." Ma Bao, the king of Wei, bowed his hand to the south, then pondered for a long time, and said: "The saint does not urge the war, but is sympathetic to the soldiers. It is also necessary to win steadily. Well, judging by the intelligence of the parties. The Tartars were invincible and were already preparing to withdraw to the Guanwai. ”

"If our army can attack early, the Tartars may not have time to prepare." Li Sixing, the son of the Jin dynasty, said tentatively: "There should be no problem with our army's steady victory, but if it takes a long time, the people are afraid of being poisoned." ”

"It's just that there are not many cavalry in our army, and tactics such as interspersing and detours cannot be implemented." Wu Sansheng felt that he had to speak for the old chief. Starting from the actual difficulties of the Ming army, he expounded his own views, "At the beginning, the Holy Shang also had the idea of landing on the flank and annihilating the Tartars in the north. However, after study and deliberation by the General Staff, it was considered that the difficulties were very great. And the risks are not small. Judging from the current strength of the enemy and our armies, our army certainly has a chance to win by storming, but if we wait until reinforcements arrive and artillery is more, we will be able to win. ”

"If the main force of the Tartars is pinned down by our army on the line between the rivers, will the possibility of a successful landing on the flank be greatly increased?" Wei Junzhong cautiously put forward his opinion, as a young senior general, he did not have a prominent family background, not like Li Sixing, so he has always been careful in what he says and acts, "And in Liaodong, our army also moves smoothly, presumably to contain many enemies." According to the experience of our army's landing in Jiaodong, if the enemy's coastal forces are weak, they are still very sure. ”

Ma Bao didn't answer directly, but turned to Xia Guoxiang and asked: "Commander Xia, you are more familiar with Liaodong, let's talk about the idea of implementing a landing behind enemy lines!" ”

Xia Guoxiang thought that since steady advance was the strategy of the Holy Lord and the General Staff, it was natural to have the advice of his father-in-law Wu Sangui, and he didn't want to go against the grain, so he said in a deep voice: "If the flank landing is implemented, at least one army must be in force to block the enemy who is fleeing north and advancing south." Moreover, if our army is unable to form a two-sided attack, the troops landing and blocking the attack may not last long. As for the Qing army, there are many cavalry, and if they learn that the back road is cut off, they will definitely go north with all their might, and our army may not be able to catch up! ”

Obviously, Xia Guoxiang's analysis is very reasonable, and it also makes the generals sober up and calm. Why do you adopt the strategy of steady advance, isn't it because the cavalry is inferior to the Qing army? You want to cut off its retreat and attack from both sides, but can the troops on the front outrun the rapidly retreating Qing army? If not, wouldn't the troops that cut off the retreat of the Qing army have to support themselves and face the enemy's flanking attacks from the north and south?

Moreover, the advantage of the Ming army was in firepower, especially in artillery, the long artillery and cannon used by the navy, the field artillery and Franc machine used by the infantry, which were several times more than those of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, and the performance was also greatly surpassed. However, due to the means of transportation at the time and the weight of the artillery, the transportation of large artillery was very time-consuming and laborious. Now that artillery is concentrating on the frontal battlefield, and then dividing the troops and transporting them again, I am afraid it will take too long.

"The Holy Lord also expected all kinds of difficulties, so he gave up his plan to annihilate the Tartars in one fell swoop." Seeing that there was basically no one to object, Ma Bao, the king of Wei, also sighed helplessly, and said: "But steady advance is not impossible, when the artillery is assembled, our army will break the enemy with a thunderous force and take the Beijing division directly." ”

After a pause, Ma Bao continued: "In addition, our army will concentrate all cavalry units for the purpose of pursuing the fleeing enemy and retrieving the captive people. In Liaodong, Yu Qisuobu should also continue to launch an offensive and lay a larger and more stable foundation for future campaigns. ”

Even in a steady frontal battle in order to win, Zhu Yongxing and the General Staff also worked out a rough plan. The so-called rough is to only talk about the key points, leaving room for front-line commanders to play.

As for the point, it is to win by firepower, more precisely by artillery. Napoleon had used the "cannon group tactic" to concentrate on artillery, and Zhu Yongxing decided to follow suit. In fact, this "artillery group tactic" was also a tactic adopted in response to the low accuracy of artillery at that time, and it was difficult to hit directly anyway, so they simply bombarded a certain point and replaced accuracy with the density of firepower.

Whether it is a long-barreled cannon, a cannon, a Franc machine and other direct-fire guns, or a Tianwei cannon, a bombardment cannon and other curved artillery, the advantages of the Ming army are far beyond the Qing army. Moreover, artillery is a relatively technical weapon of war, and Zhu Yongxing's hiring of British and French instructors and the specially set up artillery training in the lecture hall are also more powerful than those of the Manchu Qing Dynasty in terms of artillery.

At the same time, Zhu Yongxing also wrote a letter to Ma Bao. Although the decree will be obeyed and more majestic, Zhu Yongxing still likes to express his closeness and trust in his subordinates in his letters. In the letter, Zhu Yongxing reminded Ma Bao that if the Qing army retreated in a hurry, he would urge the large army to pursue and strive to drive the Tartars out of the customs in one go. And don't waste time for the vanity of entering the Jingshi.

This reminder is not unfounded, because the honor of entering the capital is what every general desires, especially when this historic city is presented undefended.

Dispatching troops, hoarding ammunition and materials, transporting artillery, and building equipment, the Ming army was in full swing to prepare for a general attack, and the time was tentatively set for November 23.

................ (To be continued......