Chapter 0879 As long as I sit in the position of the privy envoy, no one in the Song Dynasty can sle
When Mrs. Su Cheng heard Su Xun's words, she was a little surprised and said: "Do you want to think about it, husband?"
Su Xun shook his head and said: "Although the reduced business tax is profitable for the merchants, the Bohai Mansion has been beaten to a pulp, and the people inside are all prisoners. Now it is approaching winter, what kind of output can be produced?
No, there is nothing to sell to merchants.
If I just rely on business tax reduction and exemption to attract some businessmen, it will not last long.
Once the Bohai government gets back on track, commercial taxes will probably be restored.
If those merchants leave cleanly by then, it will cause great harm to Bohai Mansion."
Su Cheng hesitated for a moment and said, "Are you afraid that you will personally cultivate a group of wealthy people who eat human flesh and drink human blood?"
Su Xun glanced at Su Cheng, sighed, and said nothing.
Su Xun is very satisfied with his wife.
Su Cheng was wise, knowledgeable, and sensible. More importantly, the two of them had a spiritual connection. Su Cheng could almost guess what he was thinking, and she was like his confidant.
The right way is easy to get, but a good friend is hard to find.
In this life, it is not easy to meet someone who understands you.
He got it easily and was naturally satisfied.
The only bad thing is that Su Cheng is too smart.
Can't you hide some of your clumsiness and let me, my husband, see some secrets?
…
While the Su family was worrying about the business tax issue, Kou Ji had just settled a group of prisoners and had just returned to his residence to sit down.
Not long after he sat down, an urgent report appeared on his desk.
The urgent report was sent from the direction of Shangjing City.
The person who delivered the urgent report was Zhong Shiheng.
Kou Ji opened the emergency report, read it quickly, and frowned slightly.
Zhong Shiheng was blocking the road outside Shangjing City, and the situation was not good.
The Ayan Tribe, the Tuoba Tribe, and the Changsheng Sect among the nine new Khitan tribes all lost their composure after learning that the Song Dynasty soldiers had left the Great Wall and swept into almost all the Liao lands south of Shangjing City.
Jingnan Road, Jingdong Road, and Northwest Road in the Liao Kingdom can be said to be the temporary home base of their three forces. Now that they have been raided, they are naturally unhappy.
After getting the news, without saying a word, they broke away from the team attacking the capital and quickly returned to support.
Then on the inevitable road, I met Zhong Shiheng who was blocking the road.
The two sides had a fight.
Zhong Shiheng barely blocked them by taking advantage of the favorable location.
But the other party did not give up. After they received a severe beating from Zhong Shiheng, they did not choose to continue the fight. Instead, they turned around and rushed to Shangjing City to persuade the Wu Lie Tribe, Xi Wang Tribe and other other nine new Khitan tribes to follow them.
Let’s attack Zhong Shiheng together.
At present, three parties have been persuaded by them.
Only a few powerful tribes such as the largest Wu Lie Tribe and the latecomer Xi Wang Tribe did not nod.
Now, they are negotiating.
Zhong Shiheng felt that they would not delay for too long, so he wrote an urgent report to Kou Ji and asked Kou Ji to dispatch some troops to him to prevent any unexpected events.
Zhong Shiheng now only has 100,000 soldiers and horses in his hands, but the number of the opponent's rebel troops is not certain. The number of regular soldiers detected by the spies alone has exceeded 400,000. The number of other guys who are called soldiers but are actually murderers is even greater.
huge.
If they all rushed towards Zhong Shiheng in one breath, Zhong Shiheng might not be able to resist them.
Although Zhong Shiheng had powerful firearms in his hands, there were so many enemies that Zhong Shiheng might not be able to kill them if he used the human sea tactic.
After all, the defense line that can be defended by 100,000 people is limited, and the bullets and artillery shells that can be fired are also limited.
You have ten men, ten guns, and sixty rounds of ammunition.
And I have a hundred people.
If we charge together, can you kill them?
Are you done killing them?
It was precisely because of this concern that Zhong Shiheng wrote an urgent report to Kou Ji, asking Kou Ji to send troops and horses to help as soon as possible.
Kou Ji took Zhong Shiheng's emergency report and read it for a long time, then ordered his subordinates: "Hurry up and send an order to Di Qing's department, asking them to seize the entire Jingdong Road of the Liao Kingdom as soon as possible and rush to where Zhong Shiheng is.
Go to rescue."
Among the four armies of the Song Dynasty that were now conquering the Liao Kingdom, Di Qing's offensive was the most violent and fastest.
Apart from attacking Jingdong Road in the Liao Kingdom, Di Qing's tribe has no other tasks, so it is most appropriate for them to rush to the aid of Zhong Shiheng.
Yang Wenguang's troops and Gao Chuanggong's troops, after taking over the Liao's Northwest Road and Jingnan Road, will also attack the Liao's Shangjing Road.
Even if there is no heavy resistance in the place they attack, it will still take a lot of time for them to lead their troops and horses to sweep the entire territory.
Before winter, there was no extra time to rush to support Zhong Shiheng.
After Kou Ji asked his subordinates to go down and deliver the order, he felt uneasy, so he decided to rush to where Zhong Shiheng was to have a look in person.
Kou Ji decided to go and do it, so he didn't disturb too many people.
He just took a few followers with him and quietly left Tanshan Mountain, running towards where Zhong Shiheng was.
Four days later.
Kou Ji led the crowd to the place where Zhong Shiheng was.
Zhong Shiheng led his army and was stationed in a place that looked like a ravine.
He deployed his troops and horses at the mouth of the ravine and on the mountain walls on both sides.
The mountain wall is not steep, but very gentle.
But even so, if soldiers and horses are stationed on it, they can still occupy certain terrain advantages.
In the ravine, there is an official road running from north to south.
It was built by the Liao people.
It's spacious and solid.
It looks a bit like it was built with mature soil.
Mature soil is cooked soil, spread thickly on the ground, and almost no grass will grow.
As long as there is no force of God that changes the world and causes wanton destruction, roads paved with mature soil can last for almost a thousand years.
More than two thousand years later, some of the Chidao built with cooked earth in the Pre-Qin period are still well preserved in the pre-Qin hometown.
The Liao Kingdom was more than a little behind the Song Dynasty in terms of infrastructure.
After Kou Ji entered the Liao Dynasty, he almost never saw any Chidao built by the Liao people that could compare with the Official Road of the Song Dynasty.
In the valley, the Chi Road paved with mature soil by the Liao people was the only Chi Road that Kou Ji had ever seen, and it was relatively comparable to the Official Road of the Song Dynasty.
It's just that the second half of the Chidao has been completely destroyed.
Zhong Shiheng sent people to dig many large pits on the Chi Road. They used the soil excavated from the Chi Road to make mud and mixed it with stones to build short walls.
There are also sacks, sandbags, and walls made of stones and wood.
Place one at intervals.
Behind those short walls were hidden the soldiers of the Song Dynasty.
They held muskets in their hands and boxes stacked with grenades under their feet.
If it weren't for the armor and other items they were wearing, Kou Ji would have thought that he had traveled through time again, and to modern times.
"Bunker! Bunker!"
Kou Ji stared at the short walls and muttered to himself.
It's really not surprising that Zhong Shiheng can become a famous general who will go down in history.
Kou Ji knew clearly that he had never discussed the bunker issue with Zhong Shiheng.
Zhong Shiheng was actually able to find a bunker while using firearms in combat, and used the bunker on the battlefield in a stylish way.
This shows that Zhong Shiheng has a very strong sense of military acumen and talent.
While Kou Ji was observing the bunker, Zhong Shiheng had already rode down the hillside and arrived in front of Kou Ji.
After giving a slight salute, Zhong Shiheng asked, "Why did you come here in person?"
Kou Ji withdrew his gaze, looked at Zhong Shiheng and said, "I'm a little uneasy, so I came over to take a look in person."
Zhong Shiheng ordered someone to go over and fetch Kou Ji's horse.
As he led Kou Ji forward, he said: "The situation is a bit complicated now. The nine new Khitan tribes have assembled a large number of soldiers and horses and are now storming the capital.
The huge number of troops and horses far exceeds those used in all our previous sieges."
Kou Ji turned his head and asked, "So... we still failed to capture Shangjing City?"
Zhong Shiheng said in a dumbfounded voice: "Shangjing City is not weak either. After Yelu Zongzhen returned to Shangjing City, with the cooperation of Xiao Yanliu and others, he recalled a large number of soldiers and horses scattered throughout the Liao Kingdom back to Shangjing City.
Beijing.
In addition, he conscripted all the remaining members of the Yelv and Xiao clans into the army.
The number of defenders in Shangjing City is far greater than before.
There are not many elite soldiers of the New Khitan Nine Tribes, and the rest are just a bunch of ragtag troops. They are no match for the defenders in Shangjing City."
Kou Ji said solemnly: "Even though they are a mob, they still have an absolute advantage in terms of numbers. As long as they continue to use up their numbers, there will always be a time when the Liao army in the capital will be completely exhausted.
When the time comes, the capital city will be defeated without attacking."
Zhong Shiheng heard this and nodded: "Yes, this is what the nine new Khitan tribes did. It's just that they underestimated the Yelu Sect's determination to truly defend the city.
When Yelu Zongzhen found out that the nine new Khitan tribes were going to fight a war of attrition with him, he sent all the Liao nobles and Liao people in the capital to the city walls to defend the city.
The nine new Khitan clans used thugs to consume Yelu Zongzhen.
Yelu Zong really uses the common people to consume the nine new Khitan tribes."
Kou Ji frowned slightly, "Is Yelu Zong really planning to live and die with the capital?"
Zhong Shiheng sighed: "Now that things have happened, does he have any other choice besides living and dying with the capital? Half of the people south of the capital have already returned to the Song Dynasty, and the remaining half will soon return to us."
Great Song Dynasty.
The only land left for him was the territory north of Shangjing City.
If he can hold on to Shangjing City, he can, in the name of the new emperor, gather the territory north of Shangjing City and continue to extend the Liao Kingdom.
If he can't defend the capital, the Liao Kingdom will be doomed.
At that time, the territory north of Shangjing City will be under the control of the nine new Khitan tribes.
So he can only live and die with the capital."
Speaking of this, Zhong Shiheng paused for a moment and said sadly: "But he can't hold on anymore. He is guarding the upper capital, and his soldiers, horses, food and grass are all limited.
After spending so long, the remaining power in Shangjing City has been exhausted.
On the contrary, the Nine New Khitan Clan, because they are outside Shangjing City, can continuously send small groups of soldiers and horses to rush out and plunder everywhere, constantly replenishing them.
If one thing goes down and the other goes up, there is no doubt that the Yelv Sect will lose."
When Kou Ji heard this, he was stunned for a moment and said: "According to what you said, the people of the nine new Khitan tribes can break through the upper capital as long as they work harder.
In this case, why didn't they wait until they captured Shangjing City before returning reinforcements?
You know, after they take Shangjing City, the area north of Shangjing City will also belong to them."
Zhong Shiheng nodded and said: "The leader of the Wulie tribe had exactly this idea. So even though the Shangjing Road was in danger, he did not give up attacking the Shangjing City.
But the people of the Ayan tribe, the Tuoba tribe and the Changsheng Cult were not willing.
They want to go south and take back the vast territory we control.
Now that they have convinced the other four tribes, only the people from the Wulie tribe and the Xiwang tribe are left without nodding.
I guess that the people from the Wu Lie Tribe and the Xi Wang Tribe will definitely not give up their attack on the capital.
There will inevitably be internal strife among them.
When the time comes, people from the Ayan tribe, Tuoba tribe and other tribes will break away from the nine new Khitan tribes and send their troops south."
Kou Ji nodded and said: "A rabble is a rabble. We don't want to give up the territory that is within easy reach, but we have to go head-to-head with a powerful enemy.
The leader of the Wulie tribe was like that.
As the leader of the nine new Khitan clans, he can't suppress the others.
Even if they take over all the Liao territory, I'm afraid a civil war will break out afterwards."
Zhong Shiheng nodded in agreement.
Kou Ji smiled and said: "But they have no chance, because the Liao land belongs to us in the end."
Zhong Shiheng laughed and said: "Whether Liao Territory belongs to us depends on whether we can withstand the siege of Ayan and other seven tribes.
If we can resist, then the vast territory will be ours."
Kou Ji asked: "If we can't bear it, won't Liao territory be ours?"
Zhong Shiheng smiled bitterly and said: "Even if we lose this battle, the Liao territory is still ours, but it may take a little longer."
Kou Ji nodded and said: "In that case, there is nothing to be afraid of."
Zhong Shiheng said helplessly: "I'm not afraid either!"
Kou Ji asked: "Then you still wrote an emergency report asking for help?"
Zhong Shiheng said with emotion: "I just don't want to lose."
Speaking of which.
The two of them have already reached the top of the mountain.
There is an artillery position on the top of the hill.
The artillery pieces were all placed in the position, and their muzzles were pointed at the valley.
Next to the artillery position, there is a row of tents.
One of the tents belonged to Zhong Shiheng.
In front of Zhong Shiheng's tent, there were soldiers roasting two whole sheep.
Kou Ji glanced at it and praised: "The food is good..."
Zhong Shiheng rolled his eyes, "Besides meat, there is really nothing to eat."
It's now the turn of autumn and winter.
Thousands of miles of dry yellow with no trace of green in sight.
Don’t even think about fruits and vegetables.
The Liao people were not good at farming, so the grain they stored was almost all live cattle and sheep.
Zhong Shiheng led his troops and horses deep into the enemy's hinterland, and the transportation of baggage became extremely difficult.
Therefore, half of the rations in their army were baggage and half were captured.
In order to facilitate the transportation of baggage, Kou Ji gave Zhong Shiheng a large part of the baggage consisting of cattle and sheep.
So besides eating meat, Zhong Shiheng could only eat meat.
When Kou Ji and Zhong Shiheng arrived at the camp, the mutton was already roasted.
Kou Ji was not polite, he took out the knife from his arms, cut off a leg of lamb, gave it to Zhong Shiheng, and cut another leg of lamb for himself.
The two people were holding the leg of lamb, eating the lamb with a small blade, and talking at the same time.
"I have sent someone to give Di Qing an order to capture the Liao Kingdom's Jingdong Road as soon as possible, and then rush over to help you."
Kou Ji swallowed a mouthful of mutton and said to Zhong Shiheng.
Zhong Shiheng chewed the mutton tastelessly and said, "Then he should be able to arrive in two days."
"Two days?"
Kou Ji pondered: "Isn't it a bit short?"
Zhong Shiheng shook his head and said: "For him, it's not bad. When he puts on the mask, he is like an evil ghost, and he can fight without sleep for three days and three nights.
Once he receives your order, he will definitely attack the city day and night.
It’s not uncommon to arrive two days early.”
Kou Ji was silent for a moment and said: "Personal bravery is no longer so important to the battlefield."
Zhong Shiheng was stunned, looked at the artillery not far away, sighed and said: "That's right..."
What a hero fears most is having all his martial arts skills but having no place to use them.
After all, Zhong Shiheng was born as a scholar, so even if he felt something, it was not that obvious.
The feeling is very obvious for those veterans and fierce generals who dominate the battlefield with their personal bravery.
Zhong Shiheng already had several fierce generals under his command, but he no longer felt like fighting on the battlefield.
Every one of them looked decadent.
Kou Ji didn't see many drinkers in the army before, but after arriving at Tanshan Mountain, he found a group of them.
It is because firearms have replaced cold weapons that some veterans with martial arts have changed their mentality.
Then they drank to drown their sorrows.
Kou Ji knew long ago that after firearms replaced cold weapons, a large number of people in the army would be affected.
So whether it was Zhong Shiheng's sigh or anything else, he was expecting it.
It was impossible for him not to use firearms after making them, so he could only watch the changes in those people.
There is no time to adapt to people, only people to adapt to the times.
Kou Ji looked at Zhong Shiheng and asked, "You seem to have figured out some ways to use firearms in combat?"
Zhong Shiheng did not hide anything, nodded and said: "I have found some immature methods."
Kou Ji praised: "It's already very good."
Zhong Shi shook his head and said: "Compared to Gao Chugong's spear formation, it is far behind. My people can only hide behind the wall and fire their guns, but Gao Chugong's people can form a spear formation and suppress the enemy until they can breathe."
"
Kou Ji smiled and said: "But in terms of defense, he needs to learn from you. His spear array is indeed sharp, but he must ensure that he can always suppress the enemy and prevent the enemy from getting close.
Once the enemy finds a way to rush in front of him, his soldiers and horses will have no choice but to be slaughtered.
Moreover, if the enemy uses crossbows, heavy crossbows, bed crossbows and other crossbows to shoot at his spear array, the losses of his troops and horses will also be great.
Yours is different.
You have walls as cover, and the enemy's crossbows have no effect on you.
Once the enemy is approaching, you have to fight the enemy, but the enemy cannot fight you.
If the enemy wants to rush towards you, they must first cross the big hole you dug in advance, avoid the thunder and fire bombs buried next to the big hole, and break through the wall in front of you.
When the enemy crosses these obstacles, you have already fled far away.
And those walls left behind are obstacles that block the enemy's rapid pursuit."
Zhong Shiheng was stunned, then laughed and said: "I didn't think about it carefully before, I just figured out how to arrange it. Now when I listen to you, the things I arranged seem to be very clever and very suitable for firearms warfare."
Kou Ji smiled and said: "When there is no huge disparity in the strength of the two sides, firearms will inevitably outweigh cold weapons. The only thing that needs to be taboo is the enemy's crossbow.
There are many ways to prevent crossbows.
You can use iron shields to form an armored vehicle surrounded on all sides.
Sandbags and sacks can be used to form an easily movable wall.
You can also dig a trench about four to five feet long in the ground.
Not only can these things be used now, but they can also be used in the future when the enemy has firearms."
Zhong Shiheng stared at Kou Ji, "Have you ever seen firearms warfare? Or do you know the methods of firearms warfare very well?"
Kou Ji glanced at Zhong Shiheng and said with a smile: "I made the firearms, so I naturally know a little bit about them. In recent years, I have followed you on the battlefield, and I have learned a little bit of military strategy.
After firearms were equipped to the entire army, it was easy to see problems when watching soldiers fight with firearms.
When you go to the battlefield, your eyes will either fall on the enemy or on the soldiers.
But my eyes were always fixed on the firearm.
So it's easier for me to see what support firearms need on the battlefield.
Naturally, many unique insights can be derived.”
When Zhong Shiheng heard this, he nodded slowly and said: "You made the firearms. It is normal for you to know the pros and cons of the firearms. It is also normal for you to keep looking at the firearms on the battlefield.
It’s just that you’re saying it now, don’t you feel a little sorry for those dead soldiers?!”
Kou Ji said dumbfounded: "I only had some ideas before, but they were not mature yet. So I didn't dare to jump to conclusions. You should understand that given our status, just a word may become a rule in the army.
Therefore, we must be cautious in our words and deeds in military affairs.
Only when it is confirmed to be beneficial and harmless can we dare to speak out.
If there is serious injury, you must not speak."
When Zhong Shiheng heard this, he sighed and said: "He is also... an important minister... his words and deeds affect the lives and deaths of tens of millions of people. What can you do if you are not careful with your words and deeds?"
Kou Ji put away the dumbfounded look on his face, stared at Zhong Shiheng and said: "I hope you can combine the firearms combat methods you have learned and the firearms combat methods Gao Chugong has learned to deduce a set
The complete method of firearms warfare is passed on to those who come after you."
Zhong Shiheng was stunned and said frankly: "I won't hide my secrets for the sake of my descendants' future. But don't you think more highly of Di Qing? Why did you let me do this?
You should understand that whoever can summarize and deduce a complete set of firearms warfare tactics will be the new recruit saint in the future.
If Di Qing has the reputation of a new soldier saint, it will be very helpful for him to take over your position in the future."
Kou Ji glanced at Zhong Shiheng and said: "After I leave office, you will take office, and after you leave office, he will take office."
Zhong Shiheng said in astonishment: "Why?"
Kou Ji said frankly: "He is still young. If you push him up in a hurry, he won't be able to restrain anyone. Not to mention other people, how many of you veterans will be able to obey him?"
Zhong Shiheng pondered for a moment, nodded and said: "That's true..."
Suddenly, Zhong Shiheng seemed to realize something. He stared at Kou Ji and said, "You are young too. If you sit in the position of Privy Councilor for decades, what chance will I have?"
Kou Ji rolled his eyes, "Do you think, with my current achievements and power, if I continue to sit in the position of Privy Councilor and control half of the military power of the Song Dynasty, who can sleep peacefully?"