The atmosphere in the conference room of the military headquarters was very bad, and the Song army had a situation of 100,000 troops collapsing ten years ago. But that was the former Song Army, and the current Song Army was founded by the Zhao official family. This army once solved the Pu family, cleaned the big cannibals, recovered Cochin, destroyed the city of Champ, and opened up Siam. In the battle of the Mongols, they never lost the upper hand.

The tens of thousands of casualties in this battle were not large compared with the casualties of the previous Song army, but they were the largest losses in the history of the army established by Zhao Jiaren. So everyone didn't say anything, and in the awkward silence, someone even asked: "Official, if you encounter such a situation, how will you deal with it?" ”

Zhao Jiaren's answer was very simple, "I don't know." ”

After such an awkward conversation, the atmosphere was even more awkward. Everyone was reluctant to say anything, and between the big eyes and small eyes, everyone in the military department saw each other's confused expressions. No one knows what to say about this never-before-seen situation.

Zhao Jiaren looked at the reaction of the military department, and he felt that the military department was no longer reliable. He didn't want to speak, he was the first to break the silence, "Everyone, victory and defeat are a common thing in soldiers, and I have always opposed the result-oriented model. If it's just about the result, then everyone should be killed. The defeat this time naturally needs to be investigated, but it cannot be affected by this to continue the war. ”

Hearing this, the military department regained some vitality. Zheng Jie has been the chief of the general staff of the military department for so long, and there are many people who have a bad relationship with him, and even more people who have a good relationship with him. Zhao Guanjia's words proved that he had no intention of pursuing Zheng Jie's defeat. This is equivalent to saving Zheng Jie's life.

"I'm not on the front line, so it's hard to say anything. There are two things that are important at the moment, the first is not to let the outcome of the defeat affect the rest of the battle, and the second is that our previous layout must not be affected. Especially the decision we made earlier. The Tongji Canal is about to be re-dug up, what is the situation? ”

After listening to Zhao Guanjia's shift to other aspects, the group of soldiers who were worried that Zhao Jiaren would catch on finally relieved their hearts. As for the guy who wasn't worried in the first place, he blamed himself for Zhao Jiaren's misjudgment in his heart. Zhao Jiaren's way of doing things is that of a never-ending model. The end of any stage is only the cornerstone of the next stage, and the Zhao Guanjia will never stop, let alone lie down in credit. In the past, everyone felt that the radicalism of the Zhao official family was simply torture. Now they suddenly realize that this constant progress is so good that at least the losers will not be held accountable endlessly. As long as the imperial court is still advancing, everyone will not lose the opportunity.

The person in charge of the survey of the Tongji Canal immediately replied, "Official, the survey work has been completely completed. After the Yellow River went south, all the canals and canals between Henan and the Huai River basin were destroyed. It took hundreds of years from the Han Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty. The results of our measurements show that the amount of earth and rock is too large. ”

"Don't be afraid, if you don't accumulate steps, you can't reach thousands of miles, and if you don't accumulate small streams, you can't become a river. The cost of land transportation is too high and the efficiency is too low. You have to have a canal. How long do you think it will take? According to the current situation, the Tongji Canal has to be dug for ten years. On the other hand, the canal in Shandong may be faster, and it will be completed in four or five years. ”

Hearing such a big truth, many people in the military department pinched a cold sweat. Ten years is a very long time, and speaking to the Zhao official family like this will undoubtedly anger the Zhao official family. Unexpectedly, Zhao Jiaren was not angry after hearing this, he nodded and replied very agreeably: "Very good." This has to be started. The survey department of the troops needs to cooperate fully. ”

After talking about these tasks, Zhao Jiaren left the military department. Sitting in the carriage and closing the door, Zhao Jiaren snorted heavily. He was disappointed by the performance of the military department, and his reaction to defeat was too slow and too slow. But Zhao Jiaren could only sulk, and the previous Song army did not have any capital to face defeat. In the hundreds of years after the establishment of the Great Song Dynasty, the Song army had been fighting, but the results of the battles were not satisfactory. I really have the confidence to win, and that's just the last few years.

The carriage moved forward, and Zhao Jiaren kept finding reasons for Song Jun in his heart. Then it occurred to him something that he had never thought of before. In the 21st century, there are only a few armies left in the world that can fight. The basic view of the 21st century is that the five permanent members of the United Nations have the most capable armies in the world. However, looking at the history of these armies, the five permanent members of the Security Council have all experienced extremely brutal wars and many defeats. Accumulated experience in the sea of corpses and blood.

Zhao Jiaren's Song army is not the same as the previous Song army, and this brand-new army will of course also go through ups and downs and gradually grow. Thinking of this, Zhao Jiaren felt that his heart was much brighter, and more reasons in favor of Song Jun appeared. For example, if the previous Song army, after being broken by the enemy, was attacked by cavalry rushing into the array at close range. Its fate is inevitably to collapse, and then to be pursued and annihilated by the enemy.

However, the current Song army has encountered such an unfavorable situation, but it can still adhere to the basic formation. The infantry continued to fight, and it was the Mongols, not the Song, who withdrew from the battlefield first. This alone is enough to make Zhao Jiaren satisfied. He suddenly felt that he needed to inform the Song army at the front and praise him for such a willingness to fight. If Song Jun loses such firmness, it will lose its value as a soldier.

At the same time that Zhao Jiaren summarized the merits of the Song army, in the capital of Mongolia, a banquet to celebrate the victory was being held for the triumphant return of Marshal Boyan. The boss at the venue still had an indifferent expression, and those sincere or fake compliments didn't make the guy show the slightest difference.

When the banquet was over, Kublai Khan summoned Boyan to the back to speak. Kublai Khan said with joy: "This great victory shows that the Song army is nothing remarkable. ”

"Great Khan, the minister thinks the Song army is very remarkable." Boyan replied indifferently.

Kublai Khan's face froze, and Boyan continued: "The Song army did not waver at all after being broken, and still fought with our Mongol cavalry. Their muskets carried bayonets, and their combat effectiveness was not weak. And they don't need to change much the next time they fight, just dig a few trenches in front of the formation. The Fire Bull Formation can use one, but not two. So Great Khan, hurry up and migrate. ”

With Boyan's concise description, the battle-hardened Kublai Khan had already imagined a terrifying future in his mind. In the first time, Kublai Khan wanted to draw his horsewhip and whip Boyan. It's not because Boyan said anything wrong, but because Boyan said the big truth that can't be refuted in any way. Kublai Khan knew that he could not resist such a future, and he could not swallow this breath, so he could only vent his anger by whipping those who pointed out the problem.

Of course, this impulse to vent anger will never become a reality in Boyan. Kublai Khan had not yet reached the point of being old and confused, and at this time, the only general in the capital who could fight against the Song army was Boyan. The other generals were worried about how to use the walls of Dadu to resist the attack of the Song army. Boyan withstood the wave of the Song army's attack, and forced the Song army to retreat dozens of miles. Most of them are temporarily safe.

"You really can't destroy the Song army?" Kublai Khan asked tentatively.

"The Great Khan can go to the station where the Song army has evacuated tomorrow to watch." Boyan said succinctly.

Kublai Khan's career as a horse knows that seeing is believing. He also frankly agreed, and early the next morning, Kublai Khan went to the military station forty miles away. Standing on the wall of this military station, which was dozens of meters long, Kublai Khan stomped his feet vigorously. I only felt that the wall under my feet was not moving, and there was no sign of cutting corners. Walking on the wall, I saw that the various offensive and defensive positions on the wall were set extremely accurately. If the Mongol army wanted to besiege such a station, it would probably have to send tens of thousands of horses. However, in Hebei, there were already dozens of such military stations, and the Song army could travel between these military stations. There was simply no chance to give the Mongol army a surprise attack.

After carefully looking at the military station, Kublai Khan was in an even worse mood. He couldn't help but ask Boyan, "How did these Nanban people receive so many straw ropes for braiding bags?" ”

Straw ropes may not be valuable, but they take time. Looking at the military station of the Song Kingdom, the number of straw ropes used is appalling. The more Kublai Khan thought about it, the more angry he became, and he asked loudly: "I know that Nanban does not have a straw rope bureau, did they ask the whole Nanban to hand in straw ropes?" ”

This question was a bit of a surprise, and the courtiers and guards who followed Kublai Khan didn't know how to answer it. Those who are more astute know that the Great Khan is simply angry. After seeing these military stations, the ministers and guards finally understood that the reason why the Song army could quickly build a city was not that they knew demon laws, but that they had their own methods. But this method made Kublai Khan have no way to crack it at all. So the Great Khan got angry.

Seeing that the people below were silent, Kublai Khan suddenly kicked over a guard next to him, drew his horsewhip and cursed and beat the guard. The guards crouched on the ground, begging for mercy. Fortunately, Kublai Khan was already in his sixties and his physical strength was not strong. And over the years, I have sweated a lot and gained a lot of weight, and after more than a dozen whips, I am out of breath. Wang Donglu saw that the situation was almost over, so he stepped forward and kicked the guards a few times. Then he stood in front of Kublai Khan, a little breathless, "Great Khan, let us drag this guy down and fight." You degassed. ”

Kublai Khan naturally knew that this guard had done nothing wrong, and he had already vented at this time, so he threw down his whip and shouted to Wang Donglu: "Prepare your horse and go back to Dadu." ”

The day after returning to Dadu, Kublai Khan summoned Boyan again. This time Kublai Khan no longer insisted, but asked bluntly: "How long can you delay?" ”

"That depends on how many soldiers and horses the Song army has. If the Song army does not increase its troops, I can make it impossible for the Song army from Zhigu Village to continue the attack. If the Song army comes with another 100,000 reinforcements, I won't be able to withstand it. Boyan was still indifferent, in his opinion, there was nothing to hide in such a situation. Sooner or later, reinforcements from the Song army will come, and reinforcements from the Song army will only be more cautious. Meaninglessly appeasing Kublai Khan will only put Kublai Khan in a more dangerous situation.

Kublai Khan didn't get angry again this time, he said helplessly: "You go down." The matter of blocking Song Jun will be left to you. ”

Boyan was ordered to leave, and Kublai Khan began to gather his courtiers, led by Ahma, who was in charge of finances. Listened to Kublai Khan's order to bring the most important things and lead the core of the Mongols to the west. Ahmad didn't show a surprised expression, Boyan Dashuai was naturally tight-lipped, and Ahmad also had his eyes and ears in the palace. The advice of Marshal Boyan was so important that the people in the palace had already informed Ahma.

"Great Khan, can you take those exorcisms with you?" Ahmad asked. The so-called expulsion is the existence of serfs and the like. They belonged only to the Mongol aristocracy, such as Ahma, who had 7,500 households of his own. A few years ago, in order to exchange for the captured Mongol prisoners of war, Kublai Khan handed over all the captured southerners in his expulsion.

Kublai Khan looked at these Mongolian nobles for a while, and his eyes fell back to Ahma, "Are you willing to go west with me?" ”

Listening to Kublai Khan's question, Ahmad hurriedly replied: "Great Khan, the ministers are willing to follow the Great Khan forever." The Great Khan wanted to go west, and the ministers followed the Han to the west. ”

Seeing this pair of monarchs and ministers behaving like this, the courtiers of the financial faction of course knew what to choose, and they followed Ahma and said, "Great Khan, the ministers are willing to follow the Great Khan forever. The Great Khan wanted to go west, and the ministers followed the Han to the west. ”

Looking at the answers of these people, Kublai Khan was much happier in his heart. Although he promoted sinicization, the purpose of the implementation was not to turn the Mongols into Han Chinese, but to obtain materials from the Han land more effectively. At this time, since the Han land could not stay, Kublai Khan, as the Great Khan of Mongolia, naturally felt that Mongolian tradition was so lovely. If you can't fight, you'll go. Never stay where you are, wait to die.

"Then you can go back and prepare, and we'll leave in the near future." Kublai Khan gave the order.

Migration is not uncommon for the Mongols, and within a day or two, patches of yurts will appear in areas with abundant water and grass. By the time these areas have been eaten by cattle and sheep, the yurts will quickly disappear. Herders drove their cattle and dragged Mongolian carts to the next water meadow.

A few days later, Kublai Khan, the Great Khan of Mongolia, set out with his core team. Among them were mainly his family and bodyguards, as well as the Great Khan's own army. The brigade of men and horses protected nature and Kublai Khan's wealth. It was gold and silver jewelry, a large number of bronze objects, silk and so on. Of course, there were still some things that could not be moved for a while, so Kublai Khan asked his son Zhenjin to be responsible for cleaning up.

The reason why I didn't clean up myself is very simple. According to Mongolian nomadic tradition, the first team to feed their animals on the freshest and juiciest pasture. The further back in the line, the worse the quality of the forage. If the Great Khan's pro-army did not leave first, they would have to encounter such a situation. And at this time, Hao Ren's kid had already cleared the enemies on the road for Kublai Khan. The journey can be very peaceful.

Kublai Khan left with a melancholy, but this was only the place where he had lived for more than twenty years. For the Mongols, they can go anywhere. When leaving Dadu, Kublai Khan, who led the team out, did not notice that he had forgotten something.