As more and more of the horses were passed back like flowing water, Zhu Di began to order the troops to camp to rest and recover their strength, replenish food and water, and at the same time convene the princes and ministers to discuss.

Inside the huge tent, the light of the brazier flickered a little, and the air was filled with a dull and nervous atmosphere.

In the center of the tent was a large military map, surrounded by a few burning-out candles and paperwork.

Zhu Di wore the red cotton armor of the Ming army's new uniform, sitting in the center of the tent, with a majestic face and deep eyes, revealing the emperor's majesty and determination.

Zhu Neng, the Duke of Chengguo, was standing next to the map in person, and was focusing on reporting the military situation to the ministers according to the news that was constantly being passed back.

Zhu Neng described the terrain, enemy positions, and possible tactics in detail, gesturing with the words of the undulating voice.

Zhu Di's eyes were like torches, staring at the map, sometimes nodding in agreement, sometimes frowning and pondering, his fingers unconsciously swiping in mid-air, as if he was imagining the perfect tactical layout.

The Yongle Emperor of the Ming Dynasty was well aware of the importance of this war for the northern frontier of the Ming Dynasty, and as part of the prevention of the Timurid invasion, this war would even determine the future fate of the Ming Dynasty, so he had to devise a careful plan to ensure victory.

Zhu Di was not sure if Timur's expedition would become a reality, but Timur was already on his way.

Therefore, in order to prevent the Ming Dynasty and the Timurid Khanate from being attacked from both sides when they were in Longxi, they must first strike and cripple the remnants of the Northern Yuan in the Tatar Department.

However, no well-thought-out plan is a pat on the head, and intelligence, especially accurate information, is a prerequisite for a well-thought-out plan.

At this time, Zhu Gaoxu hurriedly opened the curtain of the tent, and a cold wind mixed with grass clippings poured in, and he didn't care about patting it, and went straight to Zhu Di.

"Sure?"

Zhu Gaoxu was sent to contact the chief officer of the 3,000 battalions in front of him just now, and he was really angry with Anhou.

The shrewd and sharp Tatar cavalry can be said to be handy for carrying out reconnaissance missions here, because they know the language of the Mongols, understand the local customs, and can disguise themselves as nomads or steppe nobles to obtain information, which is an advantage that the Han cavalry does not have.

And after the detailed reconnaissance of the scouts of the 3,000 battalions, the situation of the main force of the Tatar division has been determined.

Zhu Gaoxu nodded, carefully took out a map from his arms, and unfolded it next to the brazier next to it, the map marked the detailed terrain and the location of the enemy troops, this is the latest information.

Zhu Gaoxu pointed to the map and said, "Father, please see, according to the reconnaissance of the Tartar officials under Huoli Huozhen, the main force of the Tatar Department is currently stationed here, and according to the reconnaissance, they plan to flee separately. ”

At this time, Zhu Neng looked at Zhu Gaoxu's map, and then looked at the big map in front of him, and couldn't help but interject: "We have enough troops, we can take advantage of this opportunity to pursue from both the east and the west, so that the battle can be decided!" ”

Zhu Di stared at the map, the expression on his face was very solemn, he knew the importance of this battle.

The Tatar Ministry inherited the remnants of the main body of the Northern Yuan, so it also inherited the traditional performing arts of the Northern Yuan internal strife, if he expected it was not bad, the Great Khan of the Tatar Department, Benjamin, and the Taishi Arutai should have learned the news of the Ming army's attack, and the discussion was fruitless, and decided to run separately.

So, is it to seek stability and only chase one, or divide the troops to chase both? If the division of troops is carried out according to Zhu Neng's suggestion, is there a risk of encountering an ambush and then defeat? In other words, what if the enemy made a confused move, and once the Ming army divided its troops, it was surrounded by the main forces of the Tatar army on two sides? After all, this is not the home of the Ming army, and there are too many factors to worry about.

And Zhu Di's first large-scale northern expedition must play the military prestige of the Ming army and the national prestige of the Ming Dynasty, so the plan must also be prudent.

Zhu Di thought for a moment and probably had some thoughts, but at this time he looked at Zhu Gaoxu, whose armor was full of ice flowers.

Zhu Di said in a deep voice: "Second brother, I already know the military situation you reported, but the Tatar Arutai is cunning and murderous, we can't take it lightly, in order to ensure victory, we must formulate a more clear and detailed strategy." ”

Zhu Gaoxu replied respectfully: "My father is wise, and my sons are willing to hear about it." ”

What Zhu Di said was also recognized by the ministers, after all, since the intelligence was scouted, it may be that the enemy deliberately released it to you, do you choose to believe it or not? And this kind of decision-making game is also part of the reason why the war is wonderful.

Zhu Di got up from his chair and walked to the map: "First of all, we need to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the enemy army. The advantage of the Tatar Mongols was that they were all soldiers, and they had a very large number of horses, so it was reasonable to think that they should move very quickly. But the disadvantage is that the scale of their Khan's cattle and sheep is too large, and now it is snowing on the grassland, and for ordinary herdsmen, the cattle and sheep have not grown fat this year, which is to make matters worse, if they let them abandon the cattle and sheep, it is to abandon the only wealth, which is unlikely, so whether the enemy divides the army or not, the marching speed cannot be fast.

"This is not something that Benjamin or Arutai can decide artificially, and even if they decide to travel lightly, without cattle and sheep as supplies, in the vast grassland, the first is that the supply will soon be cut off, and the second is that even if they escape, they will not be able to live in a new place without cattle and sheep, and they will not be able to drink mare's milk and eat horse meat."

Zhu Di paused and looked at Zhu Gaoxu.

"And where are our strengths?"

"There were well-equipped cavalry, especially armored cavalry, and mule-mounted artillery units."

Of course, the infantry of the Ming army was also very strong, but the problem was that in this kind of situation that required high mobility, it was difficult for the infantry to match the movement speed of the cavalry with two heels.

And although the artillery moved clumsily, it was pulled by a large number of mules and horses, and the marching speed was not slow.

The reason why ordinary infantry is not equipped with mules and horses for them to sit on board carts and march is mainly because the Ming army does not have so many mules and horses, so the infantry brothers can only work hard.

"What about the disadvantages?"

Zhu Gaoxu said without thinking: "The supply line, the supply line is too long and too fragile. ”

The Ming army of more than 100,000 people went out of the fortress, and the daily supply consumption was quite amazing, and all these supplies had to be transferred from Beijing.

Xu Huizu, who is responsible for coordinating the supply logistics of the people, although he has prepared 30,000 Wugang vehicles, can transport 200,000 stones of grain with the army, and set up military stations along the way to store them in sections, but the further north he goes, the fewer the troops and the greater the supply pressure, and the greater the probability of being attacked, so Xu Huizu writes to Zhu Di almost every day to send warnings, all of which are "can't go further north, and the supply line will not be able to stretch further north" and the like.

Zhu Di ignored this.

The reason why the grain is stored in sections along the way is so that once the supplies behind cannot be transported, they can also turn back and get the stored food for emergencies, and it can avoid the army being dragged down by a large number of supplies and unable to march quickly.

Now that the Tatar Department has been retreating northward, Zhu Di believes that they do not have the ability to bypass the main force of the Ming army to cut off the supply line of the Ming army from the side, and most likely think that they will hide for a while longer, and when the Ming army's supplies cannot keep up, they may withdraw their troops.

This is the determination of both sides in the competition.

Anyway, Zhu Di has already made up his mind to nibble on sand reeds and drink snow water, and I don't know if Benjamin and Arutai have done a good job.

"If you don't break the Tatar Ministry, I will never be a teacher!"

Zhu Di glanced at Zhu Gaoxu, and then said to the generals: "The second brother has made our advantages and disadvantages clear, there is no need to discuss the general direction, the defeat of the Tatar department is in front of us, and it is absolutely impossible for the squad to withdraw now, so let's talk about the rest of the things." ”

"First."

Zhu Di knocked on the table with the sand table and said: "The current intelligence is that the Tatar part of the two ends fled in the east and west directions, our strength advantage is large enough, but we can't divide the troops, and the division of troops has the possibility of being broken by each one, this is a taboo for soldiers, since it is impossible to say whether the current situation is not deliberately released by Arutai to confuse us, then it will be dealt with according to the enemy's strategy, so our cavalry must act together, and we can't split the cavalry that does not have a numerical advantage into two parts." ”

The reason why Zhu Di judged this way is because the surface division of troops and then luring the enemy into the depths is the usual tactic of the famous Mongolian generals, who first use light cavalry to lead the opponent to the preset battlefield, and then annihilate the cavalry in ambush in one fell swoop.

Chengguo Duke Zhu Neng seemed to want to say something, but in the end he didn't speak, here, Zhu Di is not only the emperor, but also the commander of the army.

But Zhu Gaoxu asked instead: "How can the cavalry move when they are gathered together?" To the east or to the west? ”

"Chase the west, don't worry about the east yet."

Zhu Di explained: "Second, the Tatar tribe is now west of the Khan's court is the Warat department, the Northern Yuan finally disintegrated, must prevent them from converging, and the east is the opposite, if you go east, it is thousands of miles of vast ice fields, and finally the sea, the territory of the Uliang Ha Department (Duoyan Sanwei) is not due east, but far away in the southeast, and the Uliang Ha Department is quite deferential to the Ming Dynasty, is the weakest of the Mongol tribes, not only will not accept the Tatar Ministry, but will also be afraid that the Tatar Department will encroach on their grazing pasture, and will join forces with the Ming to fight against the enemy. ”

"Therefore, the priority of the west is greater than that of the east, and whoever flees west will be hit first."

"Of course, the matter of the supply line cannot be left unconsidered."

"I plan to let most of the five military battalions stay here, and then move some of the supplies of the five military battalions to the three thousand battalions to carry after the enemy, so that the three thousand battalions can temporarily move away from the supply line, and at the same time, the light artillery that can be towed by mules and horses in the Shenji battalion can also move with the three thousand battalions, and the heavy artillery and musketeers who are inconvenient to move will stay here with the five military battalions, and then move further north, camp and build a city, and stock up on supplies transported from the rear, It can also be used to stop the enemy from going east or force the enemy to go northeast. ”

In fact, in Jiang Xinghuo's previous life, Emperor Yongle also operated like this, at that time, Jin Youzi stayed in place and waited anxiously for thirteen days, and waited outside the temporarily constructed Tucheng after breakfast in the early morning, and Zhu Di, who had returned from victory, ordered him to write "Pinghu Zhao", which was recorded in his notes "Northern Expedition Record".

It's just that the weight of the artillery of the Ming army in this time and space has been greatly reduced, so it can barely follow the cavalry troops.

The cavalry of the Ming army's 3,000 battalions is a mixture of light cavalry and heavy cavalry, only a large number of light cavalry is needed to block the enemy, and the elite heavy cavalry is slammed into it. Your light cavalry needs to block the enemy's maneuvers.

In the era of Genghis Khan, the heavy cavalry (including pure armored cavalry and semi-armored heavy cavalry) accounted for about 35% of the Mongolian cavalry, and now, the heavy cavalry of the Tatar Department has not even left 5%, the main reason is the decline of iron-smelting technology and the lack of iron ore, it is precisely because of this that the Tatar Department at this time has not had many horses that can be equipped with heavy cavalry, and even the armor has become a rare treasure.

The current Tatar army is dominated by lightly armored or unarmored archers, and the Tatars mainly use the horn composite bow, which is made of a variety of materials, and the common production method is to take mulberry, elm and other trees as the trunk, and then match the horns of yellow sheep and bison, and then use deer skin as glue to glue and glue, and the bowstring is made of leather strips, as for the arrow, it is made of willow wood as a rod, and iron is used as the arrowhead.

There was a big gap between the overall combat style of the Tatar Department and the Northern Yuan Dynasty, and the Ming army's heavy cavalry in the wilderness was easy to be dragged to death by kite flying tactics without the cooperation of light cavalry.

Therefore, it is also very important to choose a battlefield where the Ming army's heavy cavalry can exert its power.

"The river of trouble, Benjamin."

Zhu Di looked at the map, pointed a place with his hand, and said a name.

Tatar Department as the main remnant after the disintegration of the Northern Yuan Dynasty, the population is large and the herdsmen can fight on the horse, there are no less than 100,000 people who control the strings, they have long been active in the area of the Troubled River, the Yuqu River (just renamed the Drinking Horse River by Zhu Di), at the turn of spring and summer every year, the water and grass here are luxuriant, it is a good place for nomadism, although it is almost autumn, but the snow is early, and the grassland in the upper reaches of the Drinking Horse River is threatened by the Ming army, so Zhu Di concluded that the Tatar part of the army must have a group of people, go west to the Troubled River, and then depending on whether the situation meets with the Warat Department.

And Zhu Di believes that Arutai, the de facto controller of the Tatar Ministry, is unlikely to go west, and it must be the Great Khan Benjami who goes west.

The reason why Zhu Di has this judgment is not that he patted his head, but that there is a basis.

From the end of the Northern Yuan Dynasty, if you don't count the Uliang Habu (Duoyan Sanwei) and the Eastern Chagatai Khanate (Beshi Bali), the Mongols living on the Mongolian plateau have in fact split into two parts, "Tatar" and "Warat", and coincidentally, due to the loss of power of the Golden Family, no matter which side, it is the powerful ministers, not the Great Khan, who hold the real power. It can only be said that the battle of the Blue Jade General Fishing Erhai really destroyed the prestige of the Golden Family.

History of the Ming Dynasty. The Tatar Biography clearly records that since the death of Timur, the Mongolian tribes have fallen into serious chaos, and five Northern Yuan emperors have been killed by the ministers, some of whom have not even passed down the emperor's name, and the Ming Dynasty in the south is also busy with the civil war, so during this time, even many Northern Yuan emperors (called the Mongolian Great Khan in the Ming Dynasty) can not understand the specific names and origins.

When Zhu Di first became emperor, the Northern Yuan Dynasty had just disintegrated, and the Great Khan of the Tatar Department was Guilichi, followed by the current Benjamin.

Zhu Di judged that Benjami would go west, because Jinyiwei focused on understanding the resume of this Tatar Great Khan, Benjamin is a descendant of Kublai Khan, the ancestor of the Yuan dynasty, and the blood of the golden family flows in his veins, so he was supported by Arutai and other powerful ministers to ascend to the throne, and Benjamin lived in the Western Chagatai Khanate (now part of the Timurid Khanate) when he was young, and previously mentioned that Timur has been trying to use Mongolization to declare the legitimacy of his rule, so he treats the Mongol nobles of the Western Chagatai Khanate very favorably, So Benjamin had a pretty good relationship with Timur, the old lame.

And since the Ming Dynasty received the news that Timur had gone on an expedition through the Western Regions spies, it makes no sense that Benjamin did not learn the news, and the contradiction between Benjamin and the Warat Department is very small, so once they act separately, there is a great possibility that Benjamin is going west.

The Tatar Taishi Arutai is the blood of the Asu people, the Asu people are a branch of the Semu people, which is second only to the Mongols in the Yuan Dynasty, and now after a hundred years, it has been completely assimilated by the Mongols, but unlike other Semu races that have been assimilated by the Mongols, the Asu people have a special feature, that is, they are very full of martial virtues, and the nature of the Gurkha troops with the British and the Sauron troops with the Qing is almost the same.

This history can be traced back to the Yuan Dynasty, in the Yuan Dynasty, all composed of Asu people, "Asuwei" is one of the guards of the Yuan court, its combat effectiveness in the Yuan army can be described as the best, to the time of the battle of Yuerhai, the Northern Yuan court was completely defeated by the Ming army led by Lan Yu, "Asuwei" also followed the then leader Hara Zhangrun, and later Arutai inherited the mantle of Harazhang, relying on the "Asu Guard" as the core of the original Northern Yuan forbidden army force, controlled the political situation of the Tatar Department.

This group of people really has a grudge against the Warat, it is hard to believe that Arutai will let go of his hatred and go to the Warats, even if Arutai can let go, the Warats estimate that they will not be able to tolerate him, so there is a high probability that Arutai will not go west, but will only run east, run to the east and wait for the Ming army to stop chasing and withdrawing the troops, and then come back.

All the generals understood the principle of "attacking the enemy in Bandu", and the difficult river was a natural site that restricted the terrain, and if the Tatars could be restricted in the north, then a battlefield conducive to the massacre of the Ming army's armored cavalry would be formed.

Zhu Di explained very clearly the reason why the enemy who intercepted the enemy fleeing west at the Trouble River was most likely Benya's loss, and the next thing was to arrange the troops.

During the Battle of Yuerhai, the general Lan Yu took 5,000 cavalry as the vanguard, rode straight in, biting the enemy like a pack of wolves, and then the cavalry group followed suit, and Zhu Di planned to adopt the same tactics this time.

But the key to this tactic is that the forward cavalry must not only be strong in combat, but also have enough resilience to be ready to be surrounded by the enemy's heavy forces at any time, so the selection of generals is particularly important.

This Northern Expedition Ming Army can be described as a bright star, but Zhu Di still took a fancy to his second son at a glance in the crowd.

Zhu Gaoxu didn't say anything, just nodded.

Zhu Di continued to point to the river on the map and said: "Here, we will use light cavalry to set up ambushes for long distances, although the terrain here is not dangerous, but there are several mountain ranges, easy to set up ambushes and not easy to find, when the enemy army passes here, we can launch an attack by surprise and catch them by surprise." At the same time, a detachment of light cavalry was divided into a detachment of light horses, which went around behind the enemy to disturb the ordinary herdsmen behind them, and drove the cattle and sheep to run wildly, so that the enemy army would not be able to take care of each other and fall into confusion. ”

Zhu Gaoxu's eyes revealed admiration: "Father is wise!" This strategy can not only weaken the enemy's strength, but also disrupt its deployment, and wait for the main force of our army to arrive, which is really a strategy to kill two birds with one stone. ”

Zhu Di smiled: "Very good, it's good that you can understand my intentions, but this is not enough, we also need to formulate a detailed plan of action, the light cavalry led by you needs to quickly pass through the enemy's reconnaissance range, which requires guides who are familiar with the terrain and absolutely elite scouts to shield the enemy's detection." At the same time, this force also needs to carefully select well-trained soldiers. ”

"I give you the command of the Loyal Guard."

Zhongyiwei is the emperor's pro-army, and it is also the most elite unit in the Ming army, Zhu Gaoxu nodded.

"The father and emperor have considered it thoroughly, and the sons and daughters must do their best to complete the task."

Zhu Di continued: "In addition, as the commander of the first army, you also need to pay close attention to the dynamics and changes of the Tatar department, the war is ever-changing, for the generals need to adjust the battlefield strategy at any time to adapt to the battlefield situation that may change at any time, if there are major changes, you must remain vigilant, report the military situation to me in time, and do not make decisions without permission to move forward with a bloody heart." If you encounter an invincible enemy, you have to quickly retreat and keep the enemy in a cruising state, and complete your mission while seeking help from the Lord, you know? ”

The corner of Zhu Neng's mouth twitched next to him, the emperor was really interested in his second son, and he taught him how to fight as the main general of the partial master, and in and out of his words, he was also worried that Zhu Gaoxu would be too reckless and kill himself.

Zhu Gaoxu said firmly: "Father, rest assured, the son will definitely live up to the trust!" ”

Inside the tent, next to the brazier, the markers on the map moved with the discussion between Zhu Di and the generals, and after deploying the task of the vanguard light cavalry, Zhu Di, Zhu Neng and others continued to discuss the specific plan of action and personnel allocation in depth.

"Chengguo Gong stayed here to command the five military camps and the remaining Shenji battalion, and continued to march north along the Yinma River, pay attention to stay vigilant during the march, scouts are a little farther away, and be ready to be attacked at any time, and then go seventy miles north, I remember that there is a mountain there, and there is a clean independent water source in the mountain, camp on the river at the foot of the mountain, build a city of earth and stone, and if the Yinma River cannot get water, take water from the mountains behind."

In fact, if the cavalry of the brigade and some of the artillery that can move quickly together intercept the Tatars to the west, then the infantry and the remaining firearms troops will not be able to just crouch here, and they will definitely have to block to the east, but the blocking is learned, and it is difficult for the infantry to stop the cavalry, so it is necessary to prepare in advance. This kind of preparation is not only the preparation for attacking and harassing, but also the preparation in case of being besieged and resulting in water and food shortages, after all, even if the infantry can rely on the city and camp to defend and attack, but the enemy, mainly cavalry, can still cut off your supply lines.

Of course, Zhu Neng could not make the mistake of the Battle of Ma Tan Street Pavilion, even if there was no reminder from Zhu Di, he would have considered it properly, but this kind of pre-war preparation of some "mother-in-law" is precisely a certain characteristic of the Yan army, a bit similar to the "Gray Discussion", and when the emperor finishes speaking, everyone can express their opinions, and finally brainstorm to form a complete military plan.

Zhu Di thought for a while, and then said: "In addition, send sentinels to the north and west, our infantry moves slowly, and the enemy carries a large number of cattle and sheep, and the speed is not fast. ”

Zhu Di explained the plan of action in detail: "At that time, Cheng Guogong can send several reconnaissance teams to set off first, find out the specific location and movement of the enemy, and then, according to the reconnaissance results, formulate the best detour route, let the messenger bypass the enemy, and contact the main force of our army in the west, if our army moves fast enough, then it is completely able to defeat the enemy in the west, and then after a little trimming, rush to the east to continue the battle with the Tatar troops fleeing in this direction." ”

After the military meeting, Zhu Di left Zhu Gaoxu alone.

Zhu Di took a deep breath: "Second brother, this battle is related to the future safety of the Ming Dynasty, you lead the loyal and righteous guards to take the lead, you must be cautious, and you must not be careless." ”

Zhu Gaoxu's eyes were firm: "Father, rest assured, the sons and daughters will do their best to live up to their father's trust!" No matter when, as long as the father gives an order, the son will never give up! ”

Zhu Di looked at the firmness in Zhu Gaoxu's eyes and the courage he showed, and the only little dissatisfaction in his heart was completely subsided, he knew that although this son was a little reckless and impulsive, he also had firm beliefs and indomitable courage, and he would be like before, becoming the sharpest knife in his hand, sticking into the enemy's weakness.

This battle may really require such courage and conviction to win.

Zhu Di stood up, walked to Zhu Gaoxu's side, and patted him on the shoulder: "Okay!" Then act according to the plan, you personally lead the army as the vanguard of the army, and I will press for you in the rear. Remember, this battle is only a win, not a defeat! ”

"Your eldest brother is not in good health, if you can stand up for military merits to prove your ability to lead the army in this Northern Expedition, then if you can also win the governance of Beizhili, you are not in a hurry or impatient with both civil and military skills, even if you sit in the position of the prince, others can't say anything, understand?"

A trace of excitement flashed in Zhu Gaoxu's eyes, obviously he didn't have the slightest ability to resist the big cake painted by Zhu Di, and bowed and saluted: "Thank you for your trust!" The sons will not fail in their mission! ”

With the departure of Zhu Gaoxu, Zhu Di fell into contemplation again, he knew that this battle was of great significance to the Ming Dynasty, but he also knew that his army was absolutely crushing the Tatars in terms of combat effectiveness and execution, and the battle was much lower than the time of Jingjing in terms of difficulty, and Zhu Di's mentality was therefore very stable, and the disadvantage was turned against the sky.

At the same time, he also expects Zhu Gaoxu to continue to grow and exercise in actual combat and become a pillar of the future of the Ming Dynasty.

Since the end of the military discussion, the generals acted separately, and the army began to reorganize the operation, and under Zhu Di's planning, the Northern Expedition army was about to be divided into two parts, with an absolute concentration of cavalry to launch an unprecedented encirclement and annihilation battle, Zhu Di's strategy of "first west and then east" was clear and thorough, he believed that as long as he acted according to the plan, victory would eventually belong to the Ming Dynasty.

Outside the tent, the wind and snow have completely stopped, the sun is shining through the clouds, and a battle related to the fate of the Ming and the Tatars is about to begin.

(End of chapter)