It was already dark, and the more than 100,000 troops who had arrived early set up camp in Xi'an, Yanshui. They relied on each other and the Zuowuwei on the east bank. They were horns with each other. They could advance, attack, retreat, or defend. The camps stretched for dozens of miles, and the flags were displayed.
It spreads its wings and covers the sky and the sun.
In the central military tent, tree-root candles were lit, making it as bright as day.
His Majesty Li Er stood in front of the huge map on the side of the wall. He looked at the detailed markings and meticulous lines on the map. Even the mountains, rivers, villages and towns near Anshi City were clearly visible. Every road and every street was clearly visible.
Lane, it is as if people are overlooking this area in mid-air at this moment, missing nothing.
Since he entered the Ministry of War and was called Zuo Shilang, Fang Jun has vigorously promoted map surveying and even cultivated a large number of talents who are proficient in measurement, calculation, and drawing.
These people were sent to various places in Goguryeo and spent countless money and food just to get these maps in front of them.
Looking back, I looked at the simple sand table made by the accompanying Ministry of War officials, and I felt more and more emotional. The sand table has been around since ancient times. When Qin was planning to destroy the six kingdoms, Qin Shihuang personally made them to study the geographical situation of each country. With the assistance of Li Si,
, sent general Wang Jian to fight the war to unify the six countries.
It is said that when Qin Shihuang was building his mausoleum, he built a large terrain model in his mausoleum. The model not only included mountains, hills, cities, etc., but also simulated rivers and seas with mercury, and used mechanical devices to make mercury
The flow cycle is extremely delicate.
During the Jianwu period of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Guangwu conquered Tianshui, and when the local power in Wudu area was raging, General Ma Yuan "gathered rice to form a valley and pointed out the situation", which made Emperor Guangwu feel that he was "captured in my eyes".
However, among the sandboxes in history, which one can compare to this one?
Not only are the mountains and rivers terrain reduced to a certain proportion after measurement, but even the height of the mountain peaks, the depth of the river, and the changes in the topography are extremely accurate. Standing here, you can see everything within a hundred miles of Anshi City.
As a coach, commanding thousands of troops, you can best experience the comfort and comfort of "pointing the country" from this kind of sand table.
The civil and military forces of the entire dynasty wanted to suppress Fang Jun, and even excluded the most powerful Shui from the entire Eastern Expedition battle plan. However, whether it was the baggage of hundreds of thousands of troops, the dispatch of grain and fodder, or the maps and sand tables in front of them, there was nothing
A credit that is not due to Fang Jun?
If these meritorious deeds were truly rewarded, which one would be lower?
Back then, I praised Fang Jun as "Zai Fu's talent", he was really discerning...
Feeling deep in his heart, he raised his head and looked around at everyone, looked at Cheng Yaojin and said, "Master Lu, please tell everyone about the situation in Anshi City."
After saying that, he returned to his seat, picked up the tea cup, took a sip, closed his eyes and rested his mind.
The hot spring bath in Xiongyue City was very refreshing a few days ago, but the two Goguryeo beauties made him suffer from a serious overdraft, and he even had to rely on medicine. However, after the joy, he naturally became extremely weak, as if his whole body was exhausted.
Feeling hollowed out, not only the limbs are weak and the body is weak, but also the spirit is weak.
I secretly made up my mind that although the pills are effective, I must exercise restraint in the future.
But then he thought about this personal expedition. Not only traveling thousands of miles to join the army was a great test for his body, but also arranging troops and planning required endless energy. If he didn't have those pills, would he be able to endure it?
?
Forget it, the Eastern Expedition is the most important thing. It not only affects one's lifelong reputation, but also affects the reputation after death, so he will rely on medicine to support him. After the victory and return to the court, he will entrust the government to the prince and himself in Tai Chi.
Taking good rest and recuperation in the palace will surely replenish the depleted vitality...
Cheng Yaojin stood in front of the sand table and said solemnly: "More than 200,000 Goguryeo troops have been assembled in Anshi City. They are all the elite troops of Goguryeo. Among them, there are no less than 20,000 cavalry. It can be said that they are half of the elite forces in Goguryeo.
It’s all here.”
He stretched out his finger, gestured at the place where he was fighting the Que Valley, and said: "General Xue previously severely damaged Goguryeo's reinforcements here, but did not blockade this place. Therefore, once the battle of Anshi City begins, Pingrang City will definitely have more reinforcements."
After all, there are still hundreds of thousands of troops defending Pingrang City, so Quegu Valley must be blocked tightly, otherwise when the war starts and an elite enemy force suddenly appears in the rear, it will inevitably be attacked from both sides."
Li Ji looked serious and nodded: "I didn't know much about Goguryeo before. I always regarded it as a nomadic country like the Turks and Xue Yantuo. However, when I entered Goguryeo, I realized its vast territory and prosperous population.
.More than half a million troops can be mobilized in a single battle. Apart from our Tang Dynasty, there is probably only Goguryeo in the world."
Although most of Goguryeo today make a living by farming, its nomadic characteristics have not been abandoned. The people are fierce, brave and good at fighting. When the war started, all the people immediately joined the army, old and young, women and children went into battle to kill the enemy, and the mountains within the country were continuous.
, the rivers are densely covered, and it is too difficult to conquer them.
Otherwise, given how powerful the Sui Dynasty was back then, why would all three conquests end in failure, leaving hundreds of thousands of soldiers buried in Liaodong, and the Central Plains crying out loud?
Do not underestimate the enemy. This is a mistake that anyone with some military knowledge cannot make.
However, before the start of the Eastern Expedition, few people in the government and the public truly understood the strength of Goguryeo. They all optimistically believed that the Tang army was invincible. Once the war started, they would surely march straight to Longting, and a great victory was just around the corner.
Only a few people, including Fang Jun, repeatedly emphasized the need for detailed planning and that soldiers and generals should not be arrogant. However, they were drowned in the boiling and noisy impassioned spirit, and were almost charged with being afraid of fighting and exaggerating...
Yu Chigong's dark face was shiny, and he said in a rough voice: "Goguryeo is indeed strong, but now that the army is deep into its territory, we must not make the soldiers fearful of war, so we can carefully deploy our strategy here, and it is better to be external.
It is necessary to claim that the power of the Tang Dynasty cannot be resisted by Goguryeo in order to stabilize the morale of the army."
Li Ji nodded and said, "That's right."
His Majesty Li Er, who was closing his eyes to rest, suddenly heard that Fang Jun seemed to have said something: strategically despise the enemy, tactically pay attention to the enemy... What you say is sincere, and the truth is simple.
Everyone gathered around the sand table, lowering their heads to discuss tactics, then looking up at the map, discussing how to cut off the enemy's incoming reinforcements, how to surround the city and launch a strong attack, how to plant gunpowder to blow up the city wall, how to enter the city and destroy the enemy...
There was a lot of discussion and everyone expressed his or her own opinion.
Xue Wanche and Ashina Simo stood in the corner, not participating in the discussion of tactics. The two big heads came together and muttered, showing shrinking smiles from time to time, and then quickly averted them, for fear of being seen by others...
…
As soon as His Majesty Li Er opened his eyes, he saw this scene and frowned slightly, then relaxed it immediately.
Xue Wanche was brave and unparalleled and was best at fighting tough battles. However, he lacked some strategy and was easily impulsive and misdirected. Therefore, he would either win or lose greatly in battles. He lacked stability and his control of the army was far inferior to other famous generals of the dynasty.
How could His Majesty Li Er not know about the bastard things he did in the army?
Originally, I wanted to beat him up after coming to Anshi City. After all, military law is ruthless. If a general takes the lead in disrupting military discipline, it will definitely affect the morale and morale of the army.
But now seeing Xue Wanche's heartless look, he changed his mind again.
No one is a saint, and no one can make mistakes.
On the other hand, people who have never made any mistakes are either sages in the world or have ulterior motives. I do think highly of Xue Wanche, including Ashina Simo, but in the final analysis, these two
One of them was a confidant of Prince Yin at that time. He once threatened to capture the Qin Palace and let Li Er's wives, concubines and descendants be buried with Prince Yin. The other was a Turkic nobleman with Turkic blood flowing in his body. He was not of our race. His heart
Must be different.
Normally, these two people may be respectful and loyal, but once the situation changes, one has to think about where they will go...
In particular, Xue Wanche has been the vanguard of the army in the past few months, attacking cities and villages without victory. If this trend continues, how should he be rewarded when the Eastern Expedition is over?
Is it possible that we still need to confer a title of Duke?
That is absolutely not possible.
When you reach the title of Duke, it is no longer just about ability and merit, but more importantly, political appearance. For example, Fang Jun comes from a well-established family. His father and son have made great contributions to the country, and he is the most steadfast supporter of His Majesty Li Er.
Supporters are the foundation of his rule of this empire, and Xue Wanche cannot compare with him in this regard.
Since you have made some mistakes, you will be able to make up for them when the time comes, but it will not affect your style of clear rewards and punishments...
His Majesty Li Er picked up the tea cup, took a sip of tea, and asked with a smile: "How is your discussion going?"