The third emperor of the Sui Dynasty

Chapter 478 Changes in Situation

"Yuwen Yushi's words are justified, and it is indeed a dangerous strategy with no way out!" Regarding Yuwen Shiji's objection, Hou Junji did not refute, because the facts are so true and cannot be refuted, but asked rhetorically: " If we don’t take this risky strategy, what chance will our army have against Yang Shanhui’s elite division? If we lose, our army will still be surrounded by the Sui army. How can we break the situation? Where is the way out?”

All of a sudden, the problem returned to the old problem of not being able to afford defeat.

"This..." Yuwen Shiji was speechless.

"Your Highness, the general feels that General Hou's strategy may not work." Amidst the silence of the crowd, Zhang Gongjin stood up.

"Tell me your reason." Li Shimin cheered up.

Hou Junji also looked expectantly.

Zhang Gongjin talked eloquently: "Our army is dominated by infantry. If we want to achieve the effect of a surprise attack, the only way is to give up food, grass and supplies. If we win, we will be crushed, and if we lose, we will collapse like a mountain. , then put the big things on hold. The last general means adding a safe method to General Hou’s dangerous plan... Simply put, it is to divide the army into two and advance steadily in the way of one in front and one in back If the front army wins, the rear army will take advantage of the victory and work together to expand the results of the battle; if the front army is unfavorable in the battle, the rear army will take advantage of it... Even if the army is not successful, the rear army can become the front army, tearing a gap for the army to break through... In this way, even if our army suffers damage, it will remain invincible."

The eyes of the generals brightened.

Li Shimin thought for a while, and then asked: "Yang Shanhui's troops are not weaker than our army. Our army can be divided into two, and he will not be weak after dividing the troops. How do you think we should face Yang Shanhui?"

This is the crux of the problem. Yang Shanhui, who kept their eyes on Chang Yuan, is not just talking about war on paper, let alone blind. It is impossible for him to know the changes in Tang Jun.

"This requires the cooperation of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!" Zhang Gongjin glanced at Li Shimin, who had a slightly gloomy face, and said, "There were originally [-] soldiers from Li Xizhi at Zhuyangguan, but now, His Royal Highness leads [-] cavalry to support him. The original defenders had a total strength of more than [-], and they were all elite divisions. If His Royal Highness could send a fine cavalry to march along the Yishui area, as if attacking Luhun County, Henan County would definitely be ordered to attack Luhun County. It shook up and down. At this time, Luoyang was empty of troops, and Sui Emperor Yang Yu was sitting in it. Once Yang Shanhui received that our army invaded Luoyang, he would definitely divide his troops to help. At that time, our army would have two choices: one is to follow General Hou’s plan to attack Tongguan; the second is to take Yang Shanhui's camp nearby, and then join forces with His Highness the Crown Prince to attack Luoyang, to catch Yang Tong in his own urn, and the general's thinking is more inclined to the latter." At the end, Zhang Gongjin took the opportunity to express her attitude .

Li Shimin and the generals' eyes flickered, and they all fell into short-term thinking: I have to say that Zhang Gongjin's method is extremely feasible.
Li Shimin actually had some calculations in his heart, but Zhang Gongjin's self-proclaimed "steady" strategy was even more crazy than Hou Junji's. If he failed, his two brothers would fall to Luoyang.What's more, Li Jiancheng may not be able to cooperate in combat, his elder brother is very cautious.

"Your Highness, I think that General Zhang is taking it for granted, and the feasibility is very slim." Liu Wenjing shook her head, and said the reason for her objection: "Not to mention the Luoyang defenders and county soldiers, but in the Sui Dynasty there was Xiao Xiao who was in the army with the Son of Heaven. If the Fifth Army and the Xuanjia Army are by Yang Tong's side, the number is as high as 6 to [-], so why is it said that Luoyang's troops are empty? This army is the elite of the Sui Dynasty's elite. It followed Yang Tong in all battles and never failed. Although it is not so strong that it is exaggerated to block a hundred with one, but when fighting other troops of the same strength, this army has a great chance of winning. What's more, the flat river in Henan County is the natural battlefield for cavalry. Who else can compare to Yang Tong, who has been fighting outside the territory? If our army goes to less than [-] people, we will die in vain; The king is our lesson from the past."

Liu Wenjing is scheming and strategic, and has a very high prestige whether in the court or in the army. His words directly stopped some people.But Zhang Gongjin was obviously not on the list, he ignored Liu Wenjing's prestige, and calmly argued: "Xiangguo, since the general dares to say this, there is naturally a basis for it, not just talking nonsense.

Liu Wenjing was very scholarly, but she was not a person who could not listen to opinions. Everyone worked together to plan a way out for the army, and naturally they would not bring personal emotions. She smiled and said, "General Zhang, please tell me."

"Here!" Zhang Gongjin bowed and said, "Every time Yang Tong goes to a city, he will rule a place, and then carry out a series of reforms to vigorously promote the governance program of the Sui Dynasty. In the near future, I heard that Yang Tong not only surrendered Because all his meritorious officials were dismissed, and they were held accountable for their crimes, which violated the interests of many people, which caused turmoil in a certain area of ​​Henan County! At first glance, this is no different from other places in Hebei, but before, he was It was executed after the war was completely over, and he had the time and energy to face the internal rebellion, but now he has little time to use, and there are many constraints. His strength and prestige in the Central Plains are difficult to help him quell the various forces in Henan in a short time. Different voices from the county, if our army advances eastward at this time, and promises a lot of benefits to those who are dissatisfied with Yang Tong, we will definitely get a lot of help. Don't we take this opportunity to rush into Henan? Do we have to wait for complete control?"

Liu Wenjing shook her head and said: "General Zhang's words are wrong, not to mention that Yang Tong is now taking strict precautions against our army. There are heavy troops led by Yang Shanhui and Xue Wanjun in Xiong'er and Shangluo, and it is hot summer now. Although the two armies The morale of the generals will suffer, but the Sui army can continue to mobilize troops to fight in rounds, but our army can't. Once the battle is stalemate, our army will surely fall under the Luoyang city."

"If attacking Luoyang is unrealistic, wouldn't our army still have the option of attacking Tongguan?" Zhang Gongjin frowned.

Li Shimin was also lost in thought.

"As for attacking Tongguan with light clothes, it's even more of a joke!" Liu Wenjing sneered coldly, and criticized loudly: "Just now Yuwen Yushi also talked about the old things in the Eastern Wei Dynasty, so I won't repeat them one by one! Let's talk about Tongguan as it stands. Facing the natural danger of the Yellow River, Tongguan sits in the middle of the mountain and overlooks the Guandong. What's more, the defenders of Hangu Pass are not blind. If our army storms Tongguan, they can go out to support, and the riverside area of ​​Kanto is flat, and the cavalry can gallop freely; many warships cruising in the Yellow River It’s not for display, but with the shooting range of the trebuchet and the large bed crossbow, it can completely cover the coast of the Yellow River. General Zhang suffered a great loss from the Sui army’s ship-borne trebuchet, so he should have some experience, right?”

Zhang Gongjin was flushed with embarrassment, and was poking her neck to refute, Liu Wenjing said again: "Take a step back, how do we know that the Sui army will be fooled? Not to mention, Luo Shixin, who wiped out the entire army of King Zhaojun, was not a show, I dare Guaranteed, if the prince rushes east along Yishui at this time, he will definitely be hit hard by him. This kind of policy is not at all about picking up cheap and finding ways to survive. This kind of stupid idea is purely sticking out your neck to let others Slashing with a knife is completely courting death, but it’s a waste of time for you to talk about it with high spirits.”

Liu Wenjing's refutation of the remarks of rash advances can be said to be based on sufficient arguments. Although the words are ugly, they are all convincing. Looking at it now, the designer Hou Junji and the supporter Zhang Gongjin seem shallow-sighted.

Hou Junji, Zhang Gongjin and the others blushed, but they couldn't find any loopholes, and felt more and more embarrassing...

Hou Junji's eyes widened: "The front is afraid of wolves, and the back is afraid of tigers... Why don't we fight this battle, and wait for them to attack us first?"

Liu Wenjing was not in the mood to pay attention to these ignorant guys, and no longer entangled with this issue, she bowed to Li Shimin and sighed: "Your Highness, withdraw your troops."

At this moment, a soldier walked in, saluted and said: "His Royal Highness, there is urgent information from Zhuyang Pass."

Li Shimin took the information and read it quickly, his expression became serious, he stood up and said to everyone: "The Sui Dynasty's secret work spread rumors in Nanyang, saying that the king of Huai'an sold the weapons of the soldiers, causing the whole army to be in chaos. Qin Qiong sent the general Zuo Tiancheng to lead the army. An army of [-] elite cavalry marched into Nanyang County from Nirvana River, if Xincheng County was lost, the Nanyang Army was attacked from the front and back, and Xiangyang was moved."

Liu Wenjing was amazed: "That is to say, Yang Tong lied to all of us. His strategic idea is to go straight to Xiangyang. The reason why he keeps putting pressure on our army is actually to use the strategy of diverting the tiger away from the mountain to reduce the pressure for Qin Qiong's victory in Xiangyang. "

"Maybe! Maybe not. But it doesn't matter anymore." Li Shimin smiled bitterly and sighed, but his eyes became bright at this moment.

Liu Wenjing was startled, and instantly understood Li Shimin's meaning of "maybe", and immediately smiled wryly.

Li Tang's national power was greatly damaged, and the defense line was full of loopholes. The powerful Sui Dynasty could change the direction of operations at any time. We have arrived in Hongnong, Xiyang, and Nanyang. This is purely a game of cat and mouse.

However, this shocking turn of events, for Li Shimin who was in a dilemma, was a reasonable reason to withdraw his troops.At that time, no matter how dissatisfied Li Yuan is, Li Shimin can still use the excuse of worrying about the safety of the capital to push things back.

Thinking of this, Li Shimin felt the pressure on his shoulders suddenly lighten in an instant, and his whole body became refreshed.

"Your Highness, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! Let's withdraw our troops." Liu Wenjing suggested at the right time.

"That's exactly what I mean." Li Shimin nodded: "But Yang Shanhui will definitely not take it easy, and you need to pay attention to withdrawing troops. I intend to adopt General Zhang's strategy to divide the whole army into two, and the two armies alternately. Going south under cover. At the same time, big brother, please prepare for the response. What's Xiangguo's opinion?"

"feasible!"

(End of this chapter)