The sun never sets in America

Chapter 386 Strategic Conflict
"I don't think it is a good thing to continue to attack the Great Lakes. In fact, at the beginning of the war, we calculated how much it would cost to attack the Great Lakes area with a large population, developed industries and huge cities. The answer is millions!!"

"Let me ask, can our army withstand more than one million casualties??"

"I'm afraid everyone knows it!!"

Among the General Staff of the Navy and Army in Xijing, Li Zihao was refuting the so-called "continuation of the Northern Expedition" by some top army officials.

For these high-level officials who had tasted the sweetness of the Montana War and couldn't wait to increase their troops to conquer the Great Lakes, Li Zihao felt like there were ten thousand "alpacas" running around in his heart.

For generals like Li Zihao, who have experienced two and a half months of bloody battles, urban warfare itself is a huge meat grinder. Just thinking about industrial cities like Chicago and Boston makes Li Zihao "shudder."

As a general who came out of the "mountain of corpses and sea of ​​blood", nothing is more important than the lives of soldiers.

Take the recently concluded Montana War. It seems that they defeated 500,000 US troops. However, if previous losses are included, the overall casualties have exceeded 130,000, and the number of soldiers killed alone is as high as 90,000. One time In the siege, the number of dead increased from 70,000 to 20,000.

This was just a siege war when the overall situation was decided. If it were a meat grinder-style urban war, the consumption and casualties involved, no matter how stupid Li Zihao was, he would understand what it would be like.

In fact, many people around me also understand this truth, but they cannot resist the "temptation of the Great Lakes."

Yuan Qing glanced at Li Zihao, and then continued:
"If we attack at this time, how sure is General Zhou?"

Looking at Zhou Shaoxiong, Li Zihao seemed to see himself who was just as young and energetic ten years ago, "defying the sky, the earth, and the air" in the army.

"Our army has just captured 500,000 US troops in Montana, and its morale is at its peak. If we continue to attack the Great Lakes at this time, the US military will definitely panic. If we attack the next one or two big cities, the US military will be completely passive, let alone the US military at this moment. Fear the special bullets like a tiger."

Although it has been said since ancient times that civil servants are warlike and military officers avoid war, in the Han Dynasty, both civil servants and military officials were actually warlike. However, there is a huge difference, that is, civil servants always hope to get the maximum benefit at the lowest cost. As for excess consumption, in the words of a cabinet minister: "We hope that the army will carry forward its tradition and defeat powerful enemies with its strong will."

After Li Zihao finished speaking, there was silence for a while, and then a young brigadier general stood up to refute:
"General Lee, you are the commander-in-chief of the Battle of Montana. Originally, we should listen to whatever you said, but at this time I have to refute your face."

Brigadier General Zhou's words were like a switch, completely turning on the "Great Lakes Plan" that was still suppressed. Soon, a large number of generals who originally supported continuing to advance northward, but were intimidated by Li Zihao, expressed their "continue to advance northward", and even Someone shouted the slogan "I will never return the country until Chicago is destroyed."

"If our army attacks, it will definitely break our hearts and gallbladders. But it won't be easy to win. If we wait until the US military discovers the secret of the special bomb before attacking, the US military will be able to take advantage of the fact that our army's special bomb is revealed, and morale will be boosted." How much more trouble will it add??”

Li Zihao didn't wait for Yuan Qing to continue and spoke directly: "General Zhou is young and promising. I was only a colonel at your age. If it weren't for the accumulation of military merits and promotion by Commander Tao, I would be the commander of the Left Army today. ."

"Of course it's morale. Our army has just won a victory and it's time to forge ahead. How can we stand still!!"

"I just suggested that we should send more troops to the north, and my suggestion was based on good intentions and reasons. Why did you, Chief of Staff, call me ignorant of suffering and ignorant of right and wrong?"

"Seventy percent, at least seventy percent!!"

Brigadier General Zhou's expression kept changing, and he finally replied in a hoarse tone: "Of course what the Chief of Staff said is right, but the Chief of Staff doesn't know the situation at this time. Our military is at its peak, and the U.S. military is in decline. We use prosperity to counteract decline." , why is it wrong??”

Looking at Yuan Qing, who was "full of firepower", Li Zihao had a smile on his lips, and then turned to look at the young general who had just been "proud". Seeing that his face was as pale as dirt, he was relieved and sighed in his heart. "Young people are mentally weak."

"Oh, do you think such a big change is just a word from someone in Zhou Dynasty?"

This has been recorded in the original wars. The most obvious one is the Black Sea War. A certain brigade at the front transferred a new recruit unit with no experience because of the so-called transfer order. In the end, it suffered heavy losses and even lost the army. established a position.

"Gentlemen, calm down. If you continue to fight at this time, you will undoubtedly be following the wishes of the US military!!"

"What you think of as victory is, for those soldiers, an old wound that has not yet healed, and a new battle. They finally saved their lives on the battlefield, but because of your words, General Zhou, they have to fight again with their guns. I ask you, are they still my soldiers and your robes? Do they not even have the right to rest?"

But soon Li Zihao continued to question:

"My lords, haven't you heard the story of the overlord of Chu who let the tiger return to the mountain?"

"You just said that the morale is high because of the victory, but do you know what the hundreds of thousands of soldiers of our left army have been like in the past two months? How many people have died? Originally, there were rotations, but recently, don't say It’s been rotated, and it will be good if we can recruit people.”

Zhou Shaoxiong was sweating profusely when asked by Li Zihao, and gave a hesitant answer: "Since the northern troops are unavailable, domestic troops can be mobilized to join the war, and the northern troops can be transferred to the rear to recuperate."

Yuan Qing's conversation changed and he talked about Brigadier General Zhou who was in the limelight just now. The latter was a little confused, but he still stood up and explained because of the crowd:

But at the same time, he also secretly kept this young brigadier general named Zhou Shaoxiong in his heart.

"Since you are not sure, why did you, General Zhou, just urge our army to advance north with such a determined attitude? Please note that our left army has killed as many as 90,000 soldiers in this battle, which can be said to be bloody."

The brigadier general named Zhou seemed to respect Li Zihao, the famous Li Shuai, but it could be seen from the way he spoke that he was still a little dissatisfied.

Later, the Han army stipulated that any troops that fought in a certain place for more than a month would only replace troops and not adjust defenses. The fundamental reason was to prevent them from being acclimatized and unable to figure out the enemy on the opposite side. possible failure.

"If the war was as simple as what you just said, General Zhou, I'm afraid our army would have been finished long ago. How could we have today's great victory?"

Those who know about finance are very unhappy with the consumption in the war. They always ask the Army to reduce unnecessary consumption, and often use the Army's "waste" in the war as an issue.

Under such pressure and the temptation of success and fame in conquering the Great Lakes, many people within the army are very inclined to directly increase troops to attack the Great Lakes. Even in their eyes, the so-called war is nothing in the face of invincible special bombs. .

Zhou Shaoxiong looked very good at first, but his expression soon changed.

And this is also a common problem among young people. For those old people, they always have the idea that you are all behind the times, even in the army with strict military discipline.

"Or do you think you are smarter than Commander Tao and all the generals in our army?"

As Li Zihao's deputy, Yuan Qing is very aware of the situation at this time. If he really allows these greedy and adventurous people to succeed, there will really be no turning back.

This sentence is just short of putting the word "tap water" on the face.

What Li Zihao said was very clear, that is, soldiers must not be transferred, because according to war experience, new soldiers mobilized from the rear may not be as useful as veterans on the same battlefield, and may even capsize in the gutter.

"General Zhou just said that our army is booming, may I ask where it is?"

"General Zhou has been in the rear for a long time. He may not know the pain of fighting in the trenches and the difficulty of climbing on ice and lying in the snow!!"

The people around looked at Brigadier General Zhou who was "point-to-point" with something wrong in their expressions. They frequently looked at Li Zihao's position and were relieved when they saw that his expression was normal.

"Seventy percent, that is to say, there are still 30% uncertain??"

Although this so-called consumption is also necessary for war, the financial officials don't care about it. For them, the economy always comes first.

The temptation is really too great. A few steps ahead is the Great Lakes, the industrial powerhouse of the United States. If nothing else, just grabbing one vote is enough for Han to recover a lot of the war's consumption.

Zhou Shaoxiong was speechless for a long time, unable to speak. Finally, a certain major general next to him gave him a hand, and he sat down forcefully.

But Zhou Shaoxiong was not the only one who supported the northward march. Soon, a large group of people stood up and expressed their support for the plan to continue the northward march. Most of these people were officers under the age of forty. This group of people was also currently ambitious. The largest group of people who want to "make great achievements" the most.

For these people, Li Zihao has an attitude of "procrastination".

Basically, it is the so-called "unable to fight anymore" and "the situation is dangerous" and other commonplace rhetoric.

These words naturally did not satisfy those young men. If it weren't for Li Zihao's special status and his recent status as a famous commander, ordinary generals would have been unable to handle him.

In the end, after going round and round, two plans were placed in front of Liu Penglong's case at the same time.

.............................................

"Prince, what do you think??" Liu Peng looked at Prince Liu Yu, who was sitting across from him, and dumped the trouble brought by the general department to him.

Liu Yu frowned slightly, and then replied:
“I’m reporting this to my father, I think it’s time to slow down and not let those young people do whatever they want!!”

"Oh, you also think we should slow down??"

Liu Peng continued to ask questions calmly.

"I think General Li and his colleagues did the right thing. Our army fought for two and a half months and survived for two and a half months. If we continue to fight at this time, even if we have enough ammunition, the soldiers will be exhausted and we can no longer fight quickly!!"

"If, as those people said, we are deploying troops from elsewhere, regardless of whether it will have an impact on the war situation, let's just say that our army is proportioned at this time. Where can we mobilize our troops to go north??"

"Even if we draw, who can guarantee a sure win??"

Liu Yu's words seemed to be very coherent, and even Liu Peng would find it difficult to find fault.

But Liu Peng still said:

"It is true that what you said is correct, but don't forget that at this time, the US military is already dominated by new recruits and the veterans are withering away. At this time, our army has the courage to attack the United States with its experienced troops and the newcomers. Why can't it be victorious and powerful? ?”

Liu Peng's words made Liu Yu even more confused about his father's attitude.

In the end I can only answer:

"The soldiers are tired. If we continue to attack, we may be unable to do anything!!"

Liu Peng looked at himself as the prince, and finally slapped the jade seal on the desk and ordered: "Tell them to follow Li Zihao's plan."

Just when Liu Yu was about to agree, he heard Liu Peng say again:
"By the way, the southern side needs to continue to strengthen. Prince, how is the Japanese side??"

"How many soldiers have been recruited so far??"

Liu Yu met his father's majestic eyes, his mind turned quickly, and then he replied:

"A while ago, the minister stationed in Japan reported that the Kingdom of Japan has recruited 200,000 soldiers, but most of them are new recruits and are still training."

(After becoming a vassal state, the envoy was changed to a minister, which actually means supervision)

"Two hundred thousand??"

Liu Peng pondered this modest number in his mouth, his eyes turned slightly, and then he said: "Since we have recruited 200,000 troops, then the next battle in the north will be carried out by those Japanese troops, so we can count them all. Filial piety!!”

"After all, he can be considered as the pioneer of the king!!"

When Liu Yu heard this, he quickly understood that his father had no intention of giving up and continuing to attack the Great Lakes region in the north, and then he echoed: "Since our army is exhausted and it is not suitable to mobilize the troops in the rear at the moment, we can use the Japanese as support Yes, it’s reasonable.”

"Father, in my opinion, it is better to integrate these Japanese troops into the Left Army on the spot and put them under the command of Li Zihao and others!!"

After hearing this, Liu Peng touched the jade seal on the case with a complicated expression, and finally ordered:

"Okay, tell Tokugawa Kesada that if the Japanese army makes meritorious deeds, I will not be stingy with rewards. But if he is lax and procrastinates, be careful not to protect the crown on his head!!"

Liu Yu followed up and said:
"Haidong has also prepared an army of 40,000 troops. Father, do you think?"

"Don't worry, what's the use of 40,000 yuan? Let them come in when there are not enough people!!"

"By the way, what's going on with Japan?"

As Liu Peng spoke, he remembered the small country of Japan that he had "fucked", and the little Muruhito who was still studying in Xijing, that is, the "Emperor Meiji" and the current King Meiji.

"Japan is currently under the rule of Prime Minister Kotsuka Ichinan. It is relatively smooth. Thirty thousand soldiers have been organized a few days ago. However, the country is small and the people are weak. I am afraid that I will not be able to provide more."

"Not to mention weapons, even the uniforms must be provided by our country!!"

When Liu Yu mentioned that Japanese country, he inadvertently showed his contempt.

After all, weapons don't matter. Even Japan can't afford hundreds of thousands of weapons, let alone Japan, which is smaller.

But if it can't even provide basic things like quilts and clothes, then it is no longer a small place, but a truly small place.

Thinking of Mu Ren, who was very respectful to him every time they met, Liu Yu even felt a little bit unbearable. After all, in a few years, this guy would return to such a shabby place from the prosperous Xijing. No matter how he looked at it, he was " exile".

But Liu Peng was very happy when he heard this, and even said directly: "They are just being subdued, no need to worry about it, just give it to them."

Then he said:

"Recently I heard that Lanfang is going to send troops. How will the military expenses be paid??"

Liu Yu responded with a complicated expression:
"Lanfang hopes that the imperial court will pay for half of it, and they will make up for the rest!!"

"It's a joke. Lanfang is an autonomous place. It is only natural to send troops. How can we even ask the court to share the military expenses?"

"I have often heard that the Lanfang family is very wealthy. The imperial court has supported them for so many years, but now they have to worry about even a small amount of money. How can they be decent? If word spreads, where should I put my face and the imperial court's face!!"

Liu Yu looked at his father who "took the opportunity to get angry" and his heart boiled. He knew very well that his father was using the war to weaken the strength of Lanfang.

After thinking clearly, Liu Yu immediately echoed: "What the father said is absolutely true. Lanfang is rich and well-known to the world. How much money have the local families made by relying on the imperial court to keep them in the dark? They know in their hearts that something is wrong with the empire today. We ask them to pay, but they are very worried about it. If something happens in the future, can we still count on them? I'm afraid I can't!"

"In my opinion, a telegram should be sent to denounce this matter and order Governor Lanfang to collect the war tax!!"

Liu Yu took the opportunity to turn his good will into "obedience", which can be said to have won Liu Peng's emperor's mind.

Liu Peng looked at the prince who had made a lot of progress in front of him. Even though he had some shortcomings that he didn't like, he had to admit that among the princes, he was the most capable and the most convincing.

Liu Peng nodded with satisfaction, which relieved Liu Yu from his worries.

In fact, this father has put too much pressure on him. It has been an insurmountable peak for him since he was a child. Everything he does seems to be like "floating clouds" in his eyes, and he can see through it at a glance.

As a result, Liu Yu was often generous and decent when facing ministers outside, and it was basically difficult to find fault with him. However, when facing his father, the "strict father", he easily felt "inferior".

After all, since ancient times, among the emperors of the past dynasties, there have been very few people who have done what their father did.

Since ancient times, it has been the most difficult to be the prince of a "saint king", and Liu Yu is no exception! !
At the end of the chat, Liu Peng asked another question: "Prince, how far can Europe go?"

Liu Yu lowered his head and thought for a long time, then raised his head and answered: "I think that if France wants the Mediterranean, wants Egypt, and wants to control North Africa, Britain will definitely not allow it. If we don't fight now, it is just because of actual interests. No matter what in the future, Still have to fight.”

"Russia wants to defeat the Ottomans, annex Asia Minor, and completely open its access to the sea. Britain also won't allow this. It's only a matter of time before they fight."

"Prussia is currently ready to make a move. The war is expected to break out within the next few months. If Britain is also interested in participating in the war, Europe will be turned upside down and blood will flow like a river!!"

Liu Peng looked at himself, the prince, and finally said: "Whether the world is turned upside down or blood flows like a river, I think it's best if we don't win!!"

(End of this chapter)