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 and 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, which was endless and winding for hundreds of miles.
The consumption of an army of 100,000 is beyond imagination. Just the amount of people eating horse chews is astronomical. The consumption of just an inconspicuous horseshoe or wheel is massive. This 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.
The replenishment is relatively smooth, but the delay in time is also a huge torment for both parties' 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. They are resting outside the Dongjia Temple and are sending food with the army..." came in to report
The soldier said in a deep voice.
"Well, you go make arrangements and take inventory." 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 despite his extraordinary energy.
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, looking nonchalant and energetic, 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 continue to test and collide, and the victory or defeat in small battles accumulates 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
Sun Chengzong's 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 imperial 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 we follow the best direction for the army to go south, it is naturally the safest way to capture Dezhou first. Sun Chengzong has always believed this.
After the formation of the Northern Army Corps was completed and moved south, Sun Shaozu, who had been entrenched in Jingzhou and Wuqiao front line, felt the pressure and quickly retreated to Dezhou and Lingxian, and still controlled the old city.
Deputy decisive battle pose.
You Shilu's Jizhen Army quickly moved south and regained Jingzhou and Wuqiao, facing Sun Shaozu's Datong Army far away.
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 you want to capture Dezhou, you will definitely have to fight Sun Shaozu in the Gucheng, Lingxian and Dezhou areas. 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.
It is not that easy to win with Qi. Sun Shaozu and Niu Jizong are both people who know the military. Sun Chengzong also considered attacking Dongchang Mansion before, but not only is Sun Shaozu's main force stationed here, but Niu Jizong attaches great importance to it and also has a troop stationed in Jinan Mansion.
, ready to respond to Dongchang Mansion at any time.
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 in the north and Dongchang Prefecture in the south. The distance is not too far, and with the superior canal transportation, both places can be reinforced at any time, and the Linqing Prefecture garrison can also
It was quite a lot, with a garrison of 6,000 people guarding the key points, and Linqing City was mainly on the east bank of the river. It would not be that simple to capture Linqing City by surprise.
"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, 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 wouldn't be able to capture them for a while and it would be a delay.
Fighter plane."
Although they had determined to capture Linqing, both Yang Zhaoji and He Huchen were 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 taking the risk of taking Linqing, it would be better to attack Wucheng.
There are only two thousand troops stationed in Wucheng, and more of them rely on the protection of the garrison in the old city. As long as the Jizhen army launches a more violent offensive, they can firmly hold back the old city, and the front-line garrison in Dezhou will have a better chance of taking Wucheng.
It is large and can also cut off the back line of Texas' first line.
They were not afraid of losses and sacrifices. They were both warriors who lived with their heads high and ate military rations that licked the blood from the edge of the knife. The earthen jars were never broken near the mouth of the well, but Yang Zhaoji and He Huchen were more afraid that their sacrifices would be worthless.
"Why, are you still worried about not being able to win?" Sun Chengzong could understand the worries of the two of them.
For both sides, it is difficult to keep the deployment and whereabouts of their respective troops secret in this war. The deployment of Shandong side, that is, Niu Jizong and Sun Shaozu is almost transparent to the imperial court. Long Jinwei, Ministry of War officials
Fang Si and the informant group of the Ministry of Punishment all provided the court with too much information.
Similarly, Niu Jizong and Sun Shaozu also had insiders within the imperial court and even in the army. It was also difficult for the Northern Front Army to maintain strict confidentiality. It was also a great challenge to achieve intelligence blockade on every move. However, compared to the other party, the Northern Front Army was 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 troops 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 waist, making us very uncomfortable. If we attack by force, two troops will support us, and with the canal maneuver, we will be very vulnerable in a short time.
It’s hard to break the city.”
He Huchen also explained patiently: "The Xuanfu army stationed in Chiping will 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 justified, and 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 Texas line. Sun Shaozu can't sit still either. 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 in confusion. The former was fine, but it was too far-fetched, but the latter was also considered a reason? Should the imperial court and the Ministry of War still have to dictate how the war should be fought? How should the soldiers on the front line fight?
"Sir, this is too childish, isn't it?" He Huchen was more straightforward and dissatisfied: "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 compromised, otherwise this battle will not be fought."
Sun Chengzong waved his hand, "The two points I mentioned are certainly not the reasons for choosing Linqing. Sun Shaozu can certainly think of everything we can think of. As you said, Sun Shaozu even stationed an additional 500 cavalry in the Dafu Highlands north of Linqing City.
, This is to deal with the harassment and assault once our army moves 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 would not 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.
Seeing that the two of them were confused, Sun Chengzong smiled slightly and said, "Don't be impatient. I have my own reasons for choosing Linqing. You two just execute it."
This chapter has been completed!