Li Jiangyao was staring at the map in a daze, and he didn't even pay attention to the soup that Xiahou Ninghan brought to him.

Xiahou Ninghan didn't dare to disturb his train of thought, put down the soup bowl lightly, and then prepared to retreat.

Li Jiangyao suddenly said to himself at this time: "The situation is a little not good." ”

"What's wrong?" Xiahou Ninghan asked curiously, "What's not good?" ”

Li Jiangyao looked at her, then at the soup on the table, and beckoned with a smile: "Come, you come and help me analyze and analyze to see if I think right." ”

Xiahou Ning Han smiled: "It's okay for anything else, I can't fight." Random ideas will affect your judgment. ”

"It's not that serious," Li Jiangyao continued to invite: "As the saying goes, the authorities are confused, and the bystanders are clear, sometimes my thinking will have blind spots, so you should help me check for leaks." ”

Xiahou Ninghan nodded and walked to the table: "What did you just say is not good?" ”

Li Jiangyao pointed to the map and said, "It's out of order now." You see, here, here, and here, there are wars going on right now, and the offensive and defensive sides are constantly throwing in new troops, and there are signs of rapid expansion in several battlefields at the same time. ”

Xiahou Ninghan had already known the situation of the entire battle before, and bowed slightly: "It seems that it is going to be a full-scale decisive battle." ”

"No, it's not yet ripe." Li Jiangyao frowned: "At least, I don't feel like it's time yet." ”

He pressed his finger on the position of the imperial capital: "Ashina Zhijin may also feel that the real decisive battle has not yet come." ”

"Why?" Xiahou Ninghan was a little curious.

Li Jiangyao patiently explained: "The so-called decisive battle means that the two warring sides, or one of them, believe that their own strength conditions can reach the level of a decisive battle, so that a strategic decisive battle will be launched. And all the clever military strategists are masters of seizing the opportunity and controlling the rhythm, and they will not let the war completely get out of control and develop wantonly, let alone provoke the final contest without a certain degree of certainty. ”

Xiahou Ninghan nodded: "You mean to say that neither we nor the Turks have the conditions for a decisive battle now, so they will not fight a decisive battle easily, right?" ”

"That's right." Li Jiangyao said while pondering: "From the invasion of Shengtang to the present, the Turks have hardly fought any hard battles except for the battle of the imperial capital, let alone suffered any major defeats, so the overall strength is relatively well preserved. Their only disadvantage is that they are not in a good position and can be caught between us from both sides and east. Therefore, until the threat of one side is resolved, the Turkic command will not and will not dare to engage in a decisive battle. ”

He paused for a moment, and continued: "As for us, we have obvious advantages in strategic location and war resources, but the internal problems are very serious, there are two forces, Li Kui and Lao Jianhua, and the new emperor cannot completely control the main force of Jingxiang, and the conditions for a decisive battle between the east and the west are not ripe. ”

Xiahou Ninghan listened to it with pleasure and sincerity: "Well, your analysis is very thorough. From this point of view, the current melee is only a tentative offensive and defensive contest. ”

Li Jiangyao said in a deep voice: "I just said that the situation is not good, and that's what I mean. A tentative offensive and defensive contest can be turned into a key breakthrough in a certain direction at any time, and the key lies in who has mastered the rhythm and initiative of the campaign. ”

Xiahou Ninghan was a little puzzled: "I don't quite understand what you mean, what is a key breakthrough in a certain direction?" What is the rhythm and initiative of the campaign? ”

While explaining to her, Li Jiangyao was also sorting out his own thoughts: "Let's talk about the rhythm of the battle and the initiative first. To put it simply, whoever is the main attacker, who is easier to grasp the rhythm, and who can effectively contain the opponent's troops, will get the initiative on the battlefield. ”

"I see." Xiahou Ninghan smiled: "It's just leading the other party's nose, can you understand it like this?" ”

"Absolutely." Li Jiangyao gently scratched the tip of her nose and couldn't help laughing: "Holding the other party's nose is a very appropriate description." You see, although Xu Youchang has a slight advantage in terms of troops, and the Second Army also helps him attack the enemy's supply lines, he is always on the defensive side, and when and where to attack Ronia, it is completely up to him. And here, in the direction of Bianzhou, it is also the Huaiyang Wang who takes the initiative, and he can fight wherever he wants, and he can fight wherever he wants. ”

Li Jiangyao swiped his finger to another location on the map: "As for Wuguan, it looks like the main attack of Shengtang, but unlike the other two battlefields, the goal of the Jingxiang Army is very single, it is only Wuguan, so there is not much strategic mobility, which is equivalent to no initiative advantage." ”

Xiahou Ninghan couldn't help frowning: "According to this, the Turks have actually mastered the rhythm and initiative of the battle, so which direction will they choose to break through?" ”

Li Jiangyao stared at the map: "If I am Ashina, I will definitely choose the west." Once he defeats our Zhenjiang army, he can immediately turn around and march eastward, and seek a decisive battle while the emperor's position is unstable! ”

Even if Xiahou Ninghan didn't understand military affairs, Li Jiangyao said it so clearly, she couldn't help but wake up: "Jiang Yao, do you suspect that the Turks will suddenly overwhelm the territory and come at us?" ”

Li Jiangyao nodded silently, and only spoke after a while: "The most likely situation is that Luo Nia and Yun Qianxue are pinning down Xu Youchang head-on, while Ashina Zhijin secretly mobilizes the army, carries out a large-scale interspersed detour, completely cuts off the connection between Zijin Pass and Liangzhou, and then surrounds but does not fight, luring us to rescue the besieged Xu Youchang." This method of warfare is called encirclement and reinforcement. ”

"There's no way you won't go to the rescue." Xiahou Ning Han said: "Xu Youchang is your brother who has died, and there are more than 100,000 soldiers of the Zhenjiang Army, once you are trapped, you will never watch them die." But in this way, it also played into the hearts of the enemy. ”

Li Jiangyao turned his head to look at Xiahou Ninghan: "So, you also agree with my judgment?" ”

"Recognition." Xiahou Ninghan nodded solemnly: "Even if there is only a one in 10,000 possibility, we must try to avoid it." It's not a big deal to suffer one or two defeats, or lose a few cities, as long as you keep the main force, there is always a chance to counterattack again. ”

Li Jiangyao was greatly relieved and exclaimed: "Ning Han, although you have never been on the battlefield or fought a war, you are decisive in killing and not losing to a man." I have been hesitating just now, if Liangzhou, which I finally recaptured, if I give it up easily, will I be sorry for those brothers who sacrificed for this. However, your words have strengthened my thoughts, compared to man and earth, I choose people! ”

"Then make a quick decision." Xiahou Ninghan stared at Li Jiangyao: "My husband, he is affectionate, righteous, brave and strategic, even if Ashina Jin comes to the front line in person, he can only cry out in vain!" ”

-

Looking at the military order of the capital guard, Xu Youchang couldn't help but hesitate a little.

To tell the truth, not only was he unwilling to give up Liangzhou, but he even wanted to continue to march eastward to take the imperial capital and avenge his grandfather and relatives.

He was not the only one who had the same idea, most of the middle and senior officers on the front line at this time couldn't figure it out, why did they quickly retreat and give up the entire Liangzhou to the Turks?

Although the Prince of the Temple, Ronia, was fierce and connected to several county towns, the last line of defense of the Zhenjiang army was also the most stable line of defense, and thousands of Turkic soldiers had been killed so far.

Did the brothers who died in battle die in vain?

In the face of the excited subordinates, Xu Youchang endured the unwillingness and sadness in his heart, resumed his usual military style, and shouted loudly: "What nonsense? The military orders of most of the protectors, if you can think about it or not, you have to obey it! Whoever dares to disobey, I will be the first to cut him! Shao Feng, you go and arrange it immediately, the third army will go first, then the seventh army, then the fifth army, and I will lead the first army. The armies moved twenty miles apart, and the echelons took turns to cover. ”

Shao Feng, the commander of the Chinese army, hesitated for a moment and objected: "General, I don't approve of your highness. The three armies that retreated first could not be led by the main general, otherwise it would be easy to cause chaos in the process of retreating and marching. Besides, the commander-in-chief is not responsible for breaking the queen, this is a military law set by Dadu Hu himself, and no one can violate it. ”

Xu Youchang felt that Shao Feng was a bit similar to Lin Feng back then, compared to the truth, he didn't save face for the main general at all, but since it made sense, he had no choice but to shake his head helplessly: "That's okay, since it's the rule of the capital, then I'll abide by it." The First Cavalry Corps was re-commanded by Adjutant General Gao Mingyuan. Later in the evening, the armies withdrew from the defensive line in turn and set off in concealment. ”

That night, the entire front of the Zhenjiang Army began to secretly transfer. In order not to alarm the Turks on the opposite side, Xu Youchang asked all units not to delay, not to be nostalgic for equipment and baggage, to be lightly armed, to withdraw from their positions as soon as possible, and to assemble at the predetermined location.

The Zhenjiang Army was well-trained and disciplined, and as soon as it received clear instructions, it immediately went into full action.

Overnight, the Third and Seventh Armies successfully completed their withdrawal, assembled in the area designated by Xu Youchang, and marched west at dawn.

The officers and men of the Fifth Army waited for the two fraternal units to leave, and held on to their positions for an additional hour, closely monitoring the movements of the Turks. It wasn't until Xu Youchang sent the order to set off that he evacuated in order.

The First Army, led by Adjutant General Gao Mingyuan, officially withdrew from Liangzhou Mansion in the afternoon of the same day, and followed the footsteps of the Fifth Army all the way to the west.

The four corps coordinated with each other, and every twenty miles, the first corps at the front would stop to set up a guard and cover the three corps behind to continue their march. Therefore, the entire retreat proceeded in a swift and orderly manner, without the slightest disorder, and in less than a day's work, the whole army traveled nearly a hundred miles, and soon got rid of the Turkic army behind it.

And when the last Zhenjiang army successfully passed through the white python plateau west of Liangzhou, the battle flags of the Turkic Condor Clan and the Ghost Dou Clan faintly appeared on the periphery of the hilly area not far away.

They were precisely under the order of Ashina Zhijin to surround Xu Youchang's Turkic interspersed troops in a roundabout way.

It's a pity that the plan to close the siege is still a step late after all.