Chapter 1908: Ren Zijuan, stay calm and don’t be impatient, have a clever plan
With the integration of the entire Northern Front Army Corps completed, Sun Chengzong and several other generals quickly entered the state, and the huge war machine finally began to operate.
A steady stream of grain, grass, medicinal materials, gunpowder, armor, arrows, swords, shields, spears and spears were transported southward from Tongzhou, Xianghe and Wuqing in Shuntian Prefecture via Tianjin Wei.
At the same time, various materials from Yuguan, Dagu and other docks also began to be transferred southward through the canal and Wei River.
Masters were recruited from all over the country, and under the urging of the sergeants and officials, they went south along the canal, meandering for hundreds of miles in an endless stream.
The consumption of an army of 100,000 is beyond imagination. The amount of people eating horse chews is astronomical. The consumption of just an inconspicuous horseshoe or wheel is massive, which requires quite high logistics support.
Fortunately, for this army, both Shuntian Prefecture and Hejian Prefecture can rely on canals. For the Datong Army and Xuanfu Army, which also have canals to rely on like the Shandong side, both sides can achieve logistical support. A relatively smooth replenishment, but the delay in time is also a huge torment for both sides' logistics.
The entire northern section of the canal once again showed the prosperous scene before the water transportation was interrupted, and even the towns along the canal seemed lively for a while.
"Report! A total of 3,985 people from Wuqing, Dong'an, Yongqing, Wen'an and Bazhou counties in Shuntian Prefecture have arrived and are resting outside the Dong Family Temple. They have sent food with the army..." came in to report. The soldier said in a deep voice.
“Well, you go make arrangements and take stock.” Sun Chengzong rubbed his temples tiredly and motioned to the staff and staff standing behind him to make arrangements.
After working hard for several days, he still felt a little overwhelmed even though he was extremely energetic.
Looking at He Huchen and Yang Zhaoji, who were still looking brightly next to them, even licking their dry lips, and searching carefully on the map with their fingers, the other one stretched his body with his hands on his hips, with a nonchalant and energetic look on his face. Sun Chengzong couldn't help but If you don’t admit it, you are still getting old.
It is not easy to fight this battle well, and it needs to be fought beautifully. If the court is to be inspired by the fluctuations in the hearts of the people in Gyeonggi, it must be a hearty victory, not the kind of fierce confrontation between two armies. Fight.
Although in Sun Chengzong's view, a real war is actually a process in which the two sides constantly test and collide, and the victory and defeat in small battles accumulate into a big battle to determine the outcome. Those who are good at fighting have no great achievements, and those who wish to think that they can defeat the enemy in one battle His actions were tantamount to the violent tiger Feng He. If you don't pay attention, it would be similar to the defeat of Su Shengdu's Shanxi army. However, the pressure from the Ministry of War and the court forced Sun Chengzong to fight a battle similar to Niu Jizong's sneak attack on Shanxi Town. fighting.
Since he had to fight such a battle, Sun Chengzong could only make all preparations as detailed as possible. Only in this way can the risk of failure be reduced to the greatest extent.
It takes a lot of thinking to decide where to hit.
If you follow the best direction for the army to go south, it is naturally the safest to capture Dezhou first. Sun Chengzong has always believed this.
As the northern army was formed and moved south, Sun Shaozu, who had been entrenched in Jingzhou and Wuqiao, felt the pressure and quickly retreated to Dezhou and Lingxian, while still controlling the old city. Deputy decisive battle pose.
You Shilu's Jizhen Army quickly moved south, regained Jingzhou and Wuqiao, and faced Sun Shaozu's Datong Army from a distance.
At the same time, Liu Baichuan's Northwest Army also set out to march eastward, capturing Qiu County in the west of Dongchang Prefecture, and had a small-scale battle with Niu Jizong's Xuanfu Army in Guantao.
If we want to capture Dezhou, we must fight Sun Shaozu in Gucheng, Lingxian and Dezhou. However, the three places are at the horns of each other, and there are strong cities to rely on. The Datong Army's combat effectiveness is not weak, and there are canals to transport supplies, so the war is certain. It would be delayed, but Sun Chengzong believed that as long as the tactics were used properly and in a correct manner, it would be more stable.
However, neither the imperial court nor the Ministry of War could accept Sun Chengzong's suggestion. Firstly, in terms of time, secondly, in terms of consumption, and more importantly, in terms of people's hearts, they could not afford to delay it.
Then we can only win by surprise.
So after going round and round, Sun Chengzong still set his target on Linqing Prefecture.
On the surface, Linqing Prefecture is also the core of the area controlled by Sun Shaozu, but there is Dezhou to the north and Dongchang Prefecture to the south. The distances are not too far, and with superior canal transportation, both places can be reinforced at any time, and the Linqing Prefecture garrison can also There are quite a few, with a garrison of 6,000 people guarding the key points, and Linqing City is mainly on the east bank of the river. It is not that simple to capture Linqing City in a surprise attack.
"Sir, I'm afraid Linqing will be difficult to defeat." Yang Zhaoji traced his fingers carefully on the map, pondered for a long time, and then returned his gaze to the defense map of Linqing City, "Linqing City has high walls and thick walls, and is surrounded by waterways. We simply couldn't find enough ships for a while. Although the Linqing garrison was not too large and it was not Sun Shaozu's most elite unit, we could bear the losses with such a forceful attack. We were afraid that we would not be able to capture them for a while and it would be a delay. Fighter plane."
Although they have determined to capture Linqing, both Yang Zhaoji and He Huchen are still full of doubts about this battle.
The two of them had been discussing in private for a long time and felt that rather than risk taking Linqing, it would be better to attack Wucheng.
There are only two thousand troops stationed in Wucheng, and most of them rely on the protection of the garrison in Gucheng. As long as the Jizhen army launches a more violent offensive, they can firmly hold back the front-line garrisons in Gucheng and Dezhou, and the chance of taking Wucheng will be greater. Big, it can also cut off the back of Texas' first line.
They are not afraid of losses and sacrifices. They are both warriors who live with their heads high. They eat military rations that lick the blood from the edge of the knife and break the earthen jars without leaving the well mouth. But Yang Zhaoji and He Huchen are more afraid that the sacrifices will be worthless.
“Why, are you still worried about not being able to win?” Sun Chengzong could understand the worries of the two.
For both sides, it was difficult to keep the deployment and whereabouts of their respective troops secret during this war. On the Shandong side, the deployment of Niu Jizong and Sun Shaozu was almost transparent to the imperial court. Fang Si and the informant group of the Ministry of Justice all provided the court with too much information.
Similarly, Niu Jizong and Sun Shaozu also have insiders within the court and even the army. It is also difficult for the Northern Front Army to maintain strict confidentiality. It is also a great challenge to achieve intelligence blockade in every move. However, compared to the other party, the Northern Front Army is still better. Some.
Therefore, it is very difficult to achieve strategic goals through local tactical operations in this situation. This is why Sun Chengzong prefers to use the right combination rather than a surprise victory. He is more willing to use the general trend to overwhelm others and push southward like this. Only when the two armies are facing each other face to face can the goal be achieved through subtle battlefield adjustments in a very short period of time.
It was just that the court, or the situation, did not allow this, which forced Sun Chengzong to take this risky move.
"Sir, the Datong army is not a weak force, and Sun Shaozu is not a mediocre force. They have controlled Linqing for a long time. Relying on the city wall, they can defend and block attacks with ease. They can even mobilize cavalry to maneuver east of the canal, and the people in the north of Linqing City Dafu is the commanding height in the north of the city. If an elite force is deployed there, it will be like a knife stabbing the flanks against our waists, making us very uncomfortable. If we attack by force, two troops will support us, and with canal maneuvers, we will be very difficult in a short time. It’s hard to break the city.”
He Huchen also explained patiently: "The Xuanfu army stationed in Chiping can arrive within three days. I'm afraid we are not sure that Linqing will be captured within three days."
Sun Chengzong admitted that both of their concerns were reasonable. He naturally had reasons for choosing Linqing Prefecture, but he could not tell them about it yet.
"Huchen, Taichu, I know your doubts. If I can choose Wucheng, I would also like to choose Wucheng. There are fewer soldiers and low walls. It can also cut off the canal and threaten the old city and the Dezhou line. Sun Shaozu can't sit still, but We have to consider that if the Xuanfu army makes a surprise attack on Nangong and Jizhou, even if they choose Jiama Camp in Wucheng, they will not fail to notice the weaknesses here, and another reason is that the imperial court does not want to choose a more shocking target. To inspire people, Wucheng’s reputation is not big enough, while Linqing Prefecture’s status is more important and its reputation is much greater.”
He Huchen and Yang Zhaoji looked at each other. The former was fine, but it was too far-fetched, but the latter, could this be considered a reason? Should the imperial court and the Ministry of War still have to dictate how to fight the war? How should the soldiers on the front line fight?
"Sir, is this too childish?" He Huchen said dissatisfiedly, "Such a far-fetched statement cannot be used as a reason for us to choose the most suitable combat location."
Yang Zhaoji also said tactfully: "Sir, the imperial court cannot interfere with your command, otherwise the emperor's orders will be violated, otherwise this battle will not be fought."
Sun Chengzong waved his hand, "The two points I mentioned are of course not the reason to choose Linqing. Everything we can think of, Sun Shaozu can certainly think of. As you said, Sun Shaozu even stationed an additional 500 cavalry in Dafu Highlands, north of Linqing City. , This is to deal with the harassment and assault once our army marches eastward to attack Linqing,..."
Hearing what the other party said, He Huchen and Yang Zhaoji were even more confused. Sun Chengzong was a man who knew soldiers. He couldn't understand how threatening the cavalry stationed on the side like nails was, let alone that there was another Thousands of infantry troops are also stationed here. If we want to maintain mobility and surprise, it will be difficult for us to attack with a large army. These more than a thousand troops will become a great threat.
Sun Chengzong saw that the two of them were confused and smiled slightly, "Don't be impatient. I have my own reasons for choosing Linqing. You and I can just execute it."
(End of this chapter)