In early October of the fourth year of King Chu's reign, Xiang Yan felt as if his chest was oppressed by a black cloud, making him breathless as he looked at the black mark on the map, which was the symbol of the Qin army, approaching the border of Chu.
In the past half month, the intelligence returned by the frontline scouts has been constantly updated. The number of Qin troops has continued to rise from the initial 200,000 to 300,000, until recently it was "suspected to be 500,000 or 600,000"!
"More than 600,000 people..."
Just hearing this number, Xiang Yan's son Xiang Rong exclaimed.
"The total number of Huaibei, Lu, Huainan, Jiangdong, and Jiangnan in Chu State is only over 600,000 households..."
Of course, there is some water in this number. Many Yue barbarian settlements in the Jiangnan and Jiangdong areas cannot count their household registrations, and nobles including Xiang, Zhao, Jing, Qu and other nobles also have a lot of dependent people. But in general, all Chu
There are only five million people.
"Qin used all the strength of the country to attack Qin, and Chu could only use its own troops to resist Qin."
If you want to use the same army to fight against the Qin army, then each household must recruit one soldier. This means that the Chu State must have at least one-tenth of the population free from labor and rush to the front line. In the Qin State, this may not be difficult, but
In Chu State, this is absolutely impossible!
Because the system of Chu State is very different from that of Qin State, its army is composed of three parts. The essence is the "left and right Guang" who are stationed in the capital. This army of 20,000 people is the standing army of Chu State. The king of Chu only sent the right Guang.
Transfer it to Xiang Yan for use.
In addition, there are county divisions, which are the local troops of the Chu State. They are mainly deployed in the border areas of the Chu State and are commanded by county officials, mostly in Huainan and Huaibei. These county divisions constitute the main force of the Chu army.
But most of them are private soldiers of nobles from all over the country. After the princes and nobles received the call from the King of Chu, they gathered together with the temporarily recruited territorial armed forces. Although the soldiers of Xiang, Zhao, Jing, and Qu were no less effective than those of the county
division, but most of the private soldiers are complex in composition and their combat effectiveness is worrying. Moreover, due to the different enthusiasm of the nobles for the war, some people support the whole family while others hide half of their weapons.
Therefore, Xiang Yan currently has only more than 100,000 soldiers and 200,000 civilians at his disposal, which is already the limit of Chu's load.
At this moment, following an announcement, the door of the big tent was opened, and a middle-aged nobleman in his thirties entered the tent and bowed to Xiang Yan.
"Zhaohua arrived with his private soldiers under the king's order! I haven't seen him for half a year, but Shangzhu Kingdom is still in high spirits!"
Xiang Yan quickly helped him up: "Zihua worked hard! I wonder how many people Zihua brought here from Jiangdong?"
Zhaohua responded: "Thirty thousand people!"
"Thirty thousand..."
Xiang Yan nodded. The three major clans of the Chu State, Zhao, Jing, Qu, and Zhao, were descended from Ziliang, the son of King Zhao of Chu. Many famous ministers of the Chu State, such as Zhao Xixie, Zhaoyu, Zhaoju, and Zhaoyang, were all descended from the Zhao family. Today,
It has been inherited for three hundred years, but it declined after moving east. It is no longer as prosperous as the Jing family, and its territory is not as large as the Qu family, but Zhaohua brought more people than the Jing family.
Zhaohua Zhibing, who was also a young general whom Xiang Yan was very optimistic about, took him to the map, pointed to the situation on it and said: "In this situation, which battle did Zihua have in mind?"
Zhaohua looked at the intertwined situation of the two armies on the map and was a little worried: "It is very similar to the battle between Qin and Zhao Changping..."
They are all major battles that determine the fate of the country. Both sides gather large armies at the border, and fierce battles may break out at any time.
"Of course, but Qin and Zhao fought in Changping, the strength of the Qin army was far less than what it is today, and the Chu state could not even raise 450,000 men." Xiang Yan shook his head helplessly.
The eighteenth generation in-laws of Qin and Chu were originally equally matched, but over the past hundred years they have waxed and waned. The current level of national power can be seen in their military strength.
The art of war: the first is degree, the second is quantity, the third is number, the fourth is scale, and the fifth is victory. Degree arises from the breadth and narrowness of the land. The vastness of the land determines the amount of materials, and the amount of military endowment determines the number of soldiers. Soldiers
The number of troops determines the combat effectiveness of the troops, and the combat effectiveness of the troops determines the outcome. Therefore, a victorious division is like pitting yi against baht, using strong military strength to attack a weak enemy; while a defeated division is like pitting yi against yi, using baht against yi.
A weak military force confronts a powerful enemy.
Last time Qin rushed to attack Chu, the two sides used baht against baht. Now, they are using baht against yi...
The past cannot be changed. Xiang Yan can only hope that this battle can repeat last year's miracle, giving Chu a chance to revive and slowly reverse its disadvantage!
So he smiled and asked Zhaohua and Xiang Rong, two juniors: "Then, wait and see, how should our army respond now? Should we learn from Lian Po in defense? Or learn from Zhao Kuo in attack?"
Xiang Rong replied: "At present, the Qin army is large and the Chu army is small. In my opinion, we should concentrate our troops on Chen Ying and other key areas to defend for several months. When the snow falls, the Qin army will retreat..."
Zhaohua thought otherwise: "The area around Shangdang Changping is criss-crossed by mountains, covered with ravines, and has many passes, so Lianpo can build fortifications and defend for several months. However, Qin and Chu are facing each other in Huaibei, where there is a flat river and smooth boats and vehicles. As long as the Qin army is willing, it can
We can march straight in at any time like last time, so Shangzhu Kingdom cannot imitate Lian Po and cannot defend it!"
"Furthermore, Shangzhu ordered me to coordinate the grain and grass in the country. If there are 400,000 people in Huainan, Huaibei, and Jiangdong, the grain stocks in Huainan, Huaibei, and Jiangdong will only be enough to feed 400,000 soldiers in February or March of the next year. Maybe our army will not wait until the Qin army retreats.
We need to run out of food first..."
This is also one of the reasons for Xiang Yan's distress. A large amount of land and population are concentrated in the hands of various public clans, and not much is turned over to the national treasury. In addition, the Chu Kingdom's monarchs and ministers are extravagant, and there is always no way to save much food. This time, when troops are used, each clan
Soldiers must prepare their own food and weapons.
"Looking at the Qin State, it used cattle fields and water to provide food, enforced a strict administration, and after a year of rest, it waited until the country had a good harvest before sending out troops. If it were to fight with it for a long time, the first one to be unable to hold on would be the Chu State!"
Xiang Yan pondered, and Xiang Rong asked: "Does Zihua think we should attack?"
"There is no way to defend, and no way to attack. Although the Qin army's battle line is long, it is coordinated from end to end. It can be saved by attacking Cai Zeyang City. And no matter which point they attack, the Qin army outnumbers our army. It would be bad to attack rashly.
."
"What about that?"
Under the current situation, Zhaohua has no good solution: "We can only hope that the Qin army will take the initiative to attack. Our army's advantage is to wait for work..."
To put it bluntly, the initiative in this war does not lie with the Chu State.
"Zihua is right."
Xiang Yan first affirmed Zhaohua's suggestion, but then shook her head and said, "What a pity, Wang Jian is not Li Xin! He will never attack rashly!"
Xiang Yan's prediction was quickly confirmed. A few days later, a sentinel came to report that Wang Jian had divided his 600,000 troops and stationed them on a two-hundred-mile front from Yangxia to Shangcai. After those troops arrived, they
He did not immediately send troops to attack Chu. He spent the whole day building a barrier outside the city camp at the junction of Qin and Chu, as if he wanted to stay there for a long time...
"really."
Although Xiang Yan saw through Wang Jian's plan, he was helpless and could only say bitterly:
"It seems that Mr. Wang Jian is not planning to compete with me on whose military battle is more sophisticated. What he wants to compete with me is the national strength of Qin and Chu, and each other's patience!"
…
In the first month (October) of the 24th year of the Qin Dynasty, after several days of construction, the Qin army camp outside Shangcai City has begun to take shape.
The people led by Heifu were all gearing up to enter the Chu territory to start a war. Unexpectedly, Li You once again issued an order from the old general Wang Jian: "Everyone will lead the supervision of the civilians and build barriers in front of the camp..."
The so-called barrier refers to a defensive wall. After learning this order, the impatient Dongmen Bao suddenly went crazy: "Are we here to attack Chu or to defend the enemy? Why are the Chu soldiers not seen?
You want to build barriers first? Isn’t this a sign of cowardice?”
"The Art of War says that those who cannot win must defend."
Heifu, however, looked like he had anticipated everything and said with a smile: "Choosing to defend first when the opportunity is immature is a safe way. It is better than General Li Xin's rash division of troops to attack in the last battle, which resulted in the overthrow of the army and the killing of the general.
."
It was not just the Nanjun soldiers who were ordered to build the fortress. The entire "Southern Army" commanded by Meng Wu had 150,000 soldiers and civilians. They must complete the more than ten miles long fortress this month, and the "Chinese Army" stationed in Yangcheng and Ruyang
, the barriers of the "Northern Army" stationed in Yangxia were in the shape of a corner.
Naturally, such matters are directed by professional officials. The person in charge of the general project is a "supervisory censor" from Xianyang named Linglu. Under him is "Sikong", an official from the Qin State who is responsible for civil engineering. Nanjun
Ten thousand soldiers were ordered to protect the work of ten thousand civilians, and a military commander Kong came to supervise the work...
Heifu is no stranger to the position of Sikong, because the County Sikong is under the jurisdiction of the County Lieutenant's Office. Counting his subordinates, he also has the position of "Military Sikong" in the army, responsible for marching, camping, attacking the city, and defending the city.
work.
The Qin army was very efficient in doing things. Wang Jian's order was not issued until the morning. In the evening, an army commander came down to the camp.
It was getting dark outside, and Hei Fu was delivering military affairs in Li You's camp. At this time, a short-distance soldier came in and whispered a few words to Li You. Captain Li threw away the small chess piece in his hand that was used to mark the strength of the enemy and ourselves.
, smiled and said: "I never thought I could meet an old friend here, Hei Fu, follow me out to meet this Jun Sikong!"
When leaving the tent, Heifu smiled and said, "Could it be that the captain's old acquaintance happened to be here?"
"It's more than just an old acquaintance."
For a confidant like Hei Fu, Li You didn't have to hide anything and whispered: "He was a talent discovered by my father and recommended to the Shaofu as an official. When he was in Xianyang, he often came in and out of my house..."
While he was talking, a man came to the front along with his bodyguards. Heifu saw that although he was tall and burly and looked like a martial artist, his face was very gentle, like a civil servant. He wore a double crown on his head, and his title was at least an official.
, because he had been responsible for setting up camp in Tugong for several days, and his black official uniform was dusty.
This person stepped forward, bowed to Li Youzuo, and said in a pure Guanzhong accent: "I have seen the captain!"
"Zhang Jun, what is the relationship between you and me? What do you call me a subordinate?"
Li You laughed loudly, helped up the military commander, pointed at Heifu, and introduced the two of them to each other.
"This is my most capable commander, Heifu!"
"This is Zhang Han, Jun Sikong from Xianyang Shaofu!"