Zhu Biao held his rice bowl and ate meat with big mouthfuls. It seemed that the salt was dried by his own hands. No matter what dish he had, it was more delicious than Yingtian's. He ate so deliciously that his belly was bulging.
But he didn't forget to listen to the big guys chatting. Why did it go from eating to sealing the wolf and living in Xu?
This is too far!
What's more, the people of Peiping have no clothes to wear and no food to eat. How can they have the energy to fight!
no!
Absolutely not!
Zhu Biao put down the bowl and took a serious look at Zhang Ximeng and several generals vying for it, including his cousin Zhu Wenzheng. Zhu Biao thought it would be more appropriate to start with him.
"Captain Zhu, is it appropriate to go on an expedition now?"
Zhu Wenzheng was stunned for a moment, pondered for a moment, and then said: "Your Highness, nothing is absolutely suitable for fighting. The key is to look at the right time, place and people, know yourself and the enemy, and if you are 70% sure, you can start the war."
Zhu Biao lowered his head, thought again, and then said: "I think the people are suffering too much. Why can't we wait until we recover before sending troops?"
At this time, Li Wenzhong actually spoke, "Your Highness, attacking the Yuan army and restoring vitality are not conflicts, but can complement each other."
Zhu Biao was stunned, "How to say?"
At this moment, the civil and military officials gathered together, Zhang Ximeng smiled, "Since His Highness has asked a question, let's discuss it... Let Li Wenzhong, Zhu Wenzheng, and Lan Yu, the three of you, do the main analysis, and then Yue Guogong, Song Xueshi, Bo
Mr. Wen, you guys can help fill in the gaps."
Several people nodded one after another, and everyone sat together. They were not as particular as in the palace, and they could interrupt at any time if they had any questions.
It was Zhu Biao's first time to participate in this kind of discussion, but he was quickly attracted by the lively atmosphere.
The first is situation analysis, which Li Wenzhong did very well.
At present, the Yuan army still has two heavy military groups, Liaodong and Shanxi.
Facing the direction of Shanxi, Xu Da and Chang Yuchun have divided their forces and advanced rapidly, while on the other side, Feng Guoyong has also killed Didao... With these three here, it is enough to treat Wang Baobao's symptoms as well as the symptoms.
But things are not that simple. In other words, even if Yuan Ting is completely destroyed, there will still be many troubles waiting for the Ming Dynasty.
The Yuan Dynasty ruled the world for a hundred years, and going back further, the Jin Dynasty, the Liao Dynasty... or to put it simply, because the Song Dynasty failed to unify the world, there was a long-term confrontation between the Southern and Northern Dynasties.
Too many Han people were plundered onto the grasslands.
The Yuan Dynasty was even more powerful. They also brought many Semu people from the Western Regions and other places.
Originally, for a city the size of Kaiping City in Shangdu, grasslands did not exist at all, but now there are several of them on the grasslands.
A conservative estimate is that there are now several million people on the grasslands.
Since they lost the money and food support from the Yuan Dynasty, it was very difficult for them to survive. In order to survive, they would do their best and go south to plunder.
Li Wenzhong concluded: "We only have more than half a year to prepare... First, we must build a beacon tower so that we can attack decisively when encountering an enemy attack. Second, we must arrange the military and civilians well. Military camps and militia need to be established.
We need to practice. As for the third point, we must seize the opportunity, take the initiative, expel as many tribes as possible, and clean up the remaining forces of the Yuan Dynasty. Drive them as far away as possible. If some other Han people are willing to return, we must find a way to settle them.
Weaken Bei Yuan’s power.”
Li Wenzhong's analysis is so penetrating and impressive.
Taking the initiative, just like beacon tower, is to protect yourself.
At the moment, the Ming Dynasty does not have the power to choose whether to fight or not. Everything it does is just to survive. In this case, even if it has to bear a heavy price, it has to send troops.
Zhu Wenzheng then said: "Although we have to fight, how to fight is also very particular. Tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, a large army marching out of the fortress in a mighty and mighty way, this is simply not possible! Firstly, the huge number of people and horses will cause too much wear and tear, and secondly, the movements
If we are too slow, the enemy will be thousands of miles away before we can catch up. So we can only send thousands of elite soldiers, carrying enough weapons and food, to attack decisively, seize the opportunity, and beat all enemies!"
When Zhu Wenzheng said this, he focused his eyes on the seasoning prepared by Zhang Ximeng, his eyes gleaming... Only those who have been fighting in the army for many years will know the value of this little thing.
When the Mongolian cavalry swept across the world, they endured hardships, were brave and good at fighting, and looted everywhere. Not to mention eating their enemies, they also dried beef jerky. This kind of beef jerky was as hard as wood and had enough salt. It was very salty and tasted great.
It's certainly not that good, but it's filling and not perishable.
Whenever there was a war, they would put dried meat in sheep urine to preserve it. When they were hungry, they would nibble a few sticks, and when they were thirsty, they would drink mare's milk. That's why they were able to fight everywhere, running rampant and unstoppable like a strong wind and rain.
Here in the Central Plains, it is impossible to fight like the Mongols, but all dynasties have spent more effort on exploring military supplies.
Military rations need to be durable in storage, easy to carry, and satiating.
Forget about fresh vegetables. The army usually carries corn, beans, and rice as staple food.
Then there is the salt. The good ones are some sauces, but the bad ones can only use vinegar cloth and other terrible things. It’s disgusting to say too much. I really don’t know how the soldiers in the past survived.
Zhang Ximeng implemented many reforms in the military, among which military rations were the most important.
Dried vegetables, pickled vegetables, lard, bacon, beans, dried fruits, even a little tea, brown sugar produced in Lingnan... It was Zhang Ximeng who single-handedly raised the military rations to the level that ordinary families could eat.
It's like being pulled from the eighteenth level of hell to the ground.
Otherwise, it can be said that the soldiers respected Xianggong Zhang very much!
What a nice guy!
However, it is obvious that the next step is to launch an attack on the grassland. The population is sparse and the civilians cannot keep up. Dried vegetables, bacon, lard, and even rice grains and rice are not suitable.
Zhang Ximeng heard that there is a kind of military ration. Rice is boiled, then dried, boiled and dried again... Repeated ten times, the remaining rice is broken into pieces and put in the pocket, which can be used as military ration.
Ten stones of rice often only left one stone of military rations.
Zhang Ximeng shook his head when he heard this. After all this trouble, even if he can still eat it, it only has a few calories and no nutrition at all.
Zhang Ximeng thought that if he wanted to make it easier to carry, he could accompany soldiers on long-distance raids. The best thing would be big cakes like Guokui or fried noodles.
You can mix some dried seaweed and kelp into the flatbread, crush it in advance, then use lard to make puff pastry and mix it into the noodles together.
Instead of pancakes, bake them in an iron oven so they can be stored longer.
When eating, add boiled oyster sauce and spread it on the cake.
Oyster sauce can be stored in porcelain bottles for a long time.
If you don’t have oyster sauce, or you are worried about spoilage and can’t carry it with you, just use prepared MSG powder...that is, shellfish, snails, sea sausage, these things are dried and ground into powder. You can also add salt and seaweed to it.
Debris from kelp.
When eating, just use some water to dissolve it. If you have a pot, put some clean water and boil a pot of soup, that would be better, and you can also eat something hot.
Clean water?
What to do if not?
Easy!
Zhang Ximeng tinkered with the set of tools for filtering salt water. With a little modification, he could use gravel, coarse sand, fine sand, and some charcoal to make a filter barrel.
For different levels of dirty water, filter it for different times, and you can almost get clean water that is drinkable!
But when Zhang Ximeng put this set of things in front of everyone, everyone was silent.
Including Liu Bowen and Song Lian, if anyone dares to say that Mr. Zhang is not doing his job properly, then his brain is simply broken, and his conscience is more likely to be broken, or it may be both!
It turns out that these seemingly inconspicuous little things can really become weapons on the battlefield, defeating the enemy and defeating them in every possible way!
Lan Yu was the most excited. He was holding the oyster sauce bottle in one hand and the filter bucket in the other, with a happy face.
"With this, Fenglang Juxu will be more confident! I'm afraid Huo Qubing wasn't as well-equipped as we were back then!"
Indeed, with Zhang Ximeng here, Ming Dynasty's logistics level has been greatly improved.
Nowadays, these items can be used as standard artifacts for the Ming army to march directly into the desert.
"Xiang Zhang has good intentions, but we are superficial. I'm really ashamed!" Song Lian bowed repeatedly.
"Don't put gold on my face. To be honest, I don't need it." Zhang Ximeng smiled sincerely. Yes, he really doesn't need to build his reputation like this.
"I make these things indeed for the sake of drying salt and making the dishes more delicious. They are mainly for the daily use of the people. As for helping the military, that is secondary. If I have to say something, this is called military-civilian
One body, by analogy!"
Zhang Ximeng once again said sincerely: "This is why I attach great importance to technological innovation and progress. Let's not talk about anything else. If the keel waterwheel used by Jia Shenzheng to control floods comes to our side, can it be used to lift seawater?
?”
Liu Bowen raised his eyebrows and nodded with a sigh, "Indeed, that waterwheel can save a lot of manpower."
Zhang Ximeng added: "If these things are useful, they can help us defeat the enemy, build meritorious deeds, and enslave the wolf! Do literati have more poems and articles? They can also record history. So the army and the people can be put together, and the civil and military can be close.
Cooperation. For a long time in the past, civilian officials were too obsessed with suppressing and preventing military personnel. It is time to change our thinking."
Zhang Ximeng's words were serious and sincere. These words were especially addressed to Zhu Biao. His Royal Highness the Prince was thoughtful. He had not been in Peiping for a long time, but what he saw and heard, and the way he handled things, were all refreshing to him.
A little bit of oyster powder makes the dishes extremely delicious. This magical thing can also help the army on expeditions and solve the important problem of soldiers eating!
Do you think it's magical or not?
Zhu Biao felt that there was something new to write every day, and his literary thoughts came to him like a fountain.
Zhu Wenzheng, Li Wenzhong, and Lan Yu are all planning to achieve feats comparable to Huo Qiaoqi's. Which man can resist this temptation?
Soon they all encountered the same problem as Huo Qiaoqi.
The vast grassland, the endless desert...how to find the road, how to accurately find the opponent's lair...The real power of Huo Qubing is not that he is invincible on the battlefield, although he can also fight very well!
The strongest thing about Huo Qubing is that every time he goes into battle, he can accurately find the enemy's lair and hit them accurately. The fishing guy will never be in the air.
On the contrary, Li Guang got lost time and time again and could never catch up with the crucial battle.
It’s not a question of whether it’s difficult to seal him or not, it’s just that his merits are simply not enough to make him a marquis!
What should I do?
We also need a guide!
Where to find it?
Li Wenzhong went to find Hu Shang, Zhu Wenzheng went to Guan Duo's old Red Scarf Army, and as for Lan Yu, he went directly to Gongde Camp.
"I want to call ten guides, you go and ask!"
Tamerlane agreed first, and not long after he left, when he came back, he brought more than a hundred people in one breath... The enthusiasm of the big guys exceeded Lan Yu's estimation.
He glanced at the crowd, and suddenly his eyes froze and his jaw dropped.
Iron pot!
Why are you in here?
You are the Emperor of the Yuan Dynasty!
We are going to destroy the remnants of the Yuan Dynasty, and we are going to hunt down your people and subordinates, do you know?
"I'm familiar with General Lan, all the way to He Lin. I'm sure he's much better than them. Just take me there! I also want to go out for some fresh air!" Iron Pot almost begged.